All In

T-minus 3 days until the big day! I'm flying out to Boston tomorrow! I wish my bags were already packed but they are not. I did go out for my final training run today. Nothing left to do now but enjoy the next couple of days. I'm excited to explore Boston. I use to live there a long time ago. It will be interesting to see how things have changed or remained the same. I never imagined that the next time I would be back in town would be to run the Boston Marathon.

Seven-years-old me would not be impressed since seven-years-old me use to hate running. Okay, that is not entirely true. I was a mover and a shaker but not for more than a quarter of a mile at a time. Just enough to make it from one base to the next or from one end of the field to the other. I couldn't stop moving, I just didn't get very far.

When I started running years ago, I never thought that I would ever run more than a 10K. Some years later, I remember a friend at work tried to convince me to run a half marathon...I thought she was nuts! But she lit a fire in me that day that still burns bright to this day. I think that was the day I crossed over to the crazy side where running 2-3 hours on the weekend was considered normal. It isn't normal by the way.

I can't remember when I first learned of the term "BQ". I do remember that at the time I didn't paid much attention to all the chatter about it because to be honest I never thought that I would ever be able to qualify. I attempted to qualify a couple of times but was unsuccessful by a long shot. When they lowered the qualifying time last year or maybe it was two years ago, I remember friend Darren remarking that perhaps when we get older we might be able to finally catch up to the qualifying standards if we kept up our pace. I nodded in agreement.

Then one day it happened and a month ago I got this in the mail. Frankly, I don't care what seven-years-old me thinks because present day me is jumping up and down.

Glimpses

I spent most of this week adjusting back to my regular daily routine. It's been a busy week but for some reason it has dragged on. I had hoped to post more than once this week especially with everything that has gone on this past month but that didn't happen. Before more times passes, I want to at least put up some photos of the past couple of weeks. It's been crazy but amazing! I hope to be able to go more in details about my wedding and honeymoon but for now here are a few glimpses.

Wedding day!

Our honeymoon to the Turks & Caicos Island! This place is just spectacular! I will definitely go more in depth of the trip for those who are interested.

Finally, I am running the LA Marathon this weekend. It will be my 8th LA and my 21st marathon. I'm really nervous about this one as I am severely under-trained. I spent most of January and February finalizing details for my wedding and did absolutely no running while on vacation. I got back in town just in time for taper week. It's strange to call it "taper week" since I have not been running much. Poor planning on my part for sure. All I have to say is that sh%$ is going to hit the fan this Sunday. I'm going to use the race as a training run for Boston which is coming up in about a month. I have a couple of races in between the two which I am also not prepared for. I must have been nuts to think that I could pull this off. This is definitely not ideal but as always I will make the best of the situation or die trying.

Random Photos

I was doing a photo dump the other day and came across some random photos that perhaps I had meant to tweet about or blog about but had forgotten.

Back in December, I purchased a Groupon for a blowout at MyBlow LA located at the Irvine Spectrum a couple of shops down from H&M and Target. I decided to use my Groupon one Friday afternoon before heading to a party. When I got there it was super crowded and busy. The place was not all that big. There was one of those white leather circular sofa right in the middle of this small place but all the seats were already occupied. I think perhaps they had over booked or maybe that is just how they do things to be able to offer such affordable hair-styling services. I decided to wait outside because there was not really any place to stand inside. It started sprinkling a little bit at this point so I stepped back inside. Twenty minutes after my scheduled appointment, they finally take me to the hair-washing station. After that, I sat at the circular sofa some more. They offered me champagne but I just wanted to get my hair done and be out of that busy place. Ten minutes later a stylist came to take me to her work station. An hour later...this was the end result. The stylist was very nice and I thought she did a nice job with my long hair but I was very turned off by the hectic feeling of this place. They just opened not too long ago so I'm still hoping that maybe things will settle down a bit with time because this place was super convenient and pretty affordable.

This is a very yummy grilled shrimp bowl from Baja Fresh. It's even more amazing when you pour mango salsa all over it. It's pretty large so you can definitely get two meals out of it.

I HAD to take a photo of this meal because my man made it for me one night and that man does not cook. It's pork chops and it was really good!

Sometimes I get really picky about my food for no particular reason at all and on this day I wanted some sushi but I didn't want to eat too much carbs so I asked the sushi chef to make me this no-rice roll.

I think I posted this photo on twitter but it is a Japanese snack/cookie/dessert item called a Taiyaki. It is basically made in a mode using a pancake-like batter and filled with either chocolate, vanilla custard or red bean paste.

So this is one of the things I do to cross-train when I am not running. I love to spin! Almost as much as I love to run...which is a lot. The two compete for my time every week. Sometimes I spin in a group setting and sometimes on my own. I use to teach but not anymore. Sometimes I miss teaching but mostly I am just grateful that I got that opportunity to learn.

I saved the best for last. A couple of weeks ago I tried menudo for the first and last time in my life. I can understand why some people might like it but it was just not for me. I think I am pretty open- minded when it comes to food but I'm pretty sure that this is one dish that I will never eat again. That's saying a lot because there are very few things out there that I feel this way about. Adios menudo!

Back On Track

Sooner or later I knew that I had to go back to track after my 'craptacular' performance at CIM. I originally planned to go back in January but because I'm so good at following plans I went back today. Not entirely out of my own will. I ran into Darren yesterday at the gym and he normally does track on Tuesday so I decided to tag along with him and some other coworkers. I am so suggestible.

I'm the worst...apparently the last time I was at track was back in August. I've been feeling awful lately so I'm not even sure how I was able to run one of my fastest mile repeats. It's probably some freak accident that will probably never happen again.

In other news, the holidays are here! This is why I've been feeling so awful. I'm just not a fan of this time of year.

The treats have been good...really really good...just not for my waistline.

I've unofficially started cleaning up my plate prior to January 1.  Not really because I wanted to but more because I was starting to feel like an overgrown slug. So here's to getting a head start!

Last week on Twitter a discussion was started by Krissy, Heather and Becka on costume ideas for the 2013 Tinkerbell Half. I'm unfortunately not even signed up for that race so I wasn't sure how I even got into the conversation. I guess I'm just nosy. Maybe it was because I heard the word 'costume' because you know that's my bag baby. Anyhow, I think they are going to dress up as varies characters from the Sugar Rush gang. I must have been on crack because I volunteered to dress up as Adorabeezle and I'm not even registered for the race. I haven't seen Wreck-It Ralph yet but I think Adorabeezle is...well for lack of a better word...adorable! I can probably throw this costume together pretty quickly...now all I need is a bib. :0)

November First

I've been eating a lot of candy lately. Not just yesterday [Halloween] when eating a little bit of candy is appropriate. I mean for a couple of weeks now. It started out with a couple of gummy bears and has since turned into me wanting sugar almost every single day...a couple of times a day. The worst part of all of this is that I am craving the sugar at night...late night...when I am supposed to be sleeping but instead I'm in my kitchen holding a bag of half empty candy.

Last night I stopped off at Walgreens on my way home from work to pick up a bag of fun size candy to give out to the trick or treat-ers. I live in an apartment complex and surprisingly don't get a lot of people coming around asking for candy. When I say 'not many people come around', I basically mean zero. But I always buy a bag just in case someone does come around. The last thing I want to be is that apartment with no candy. Last night, a child and an adult did come around. That's like the most people we've ever had. That was it. Two people. Now there is a bag of candy sitting around in my apartment. It's already half empty.

Today is November 1st, twenty-one days from now will be Thanksgiving. The holidays are upon us. The last couple of year, I've done a pre-Thanksgiving diet clean-up and religiously worked-out to offset the inevitable dinner feasts, cookie exchanges, office parties and ultimately finding myself standing in front of a large dessert table. Last night, as I was sitting there downing my third fun size I suddenly remembered that tomorrow was November 1st. So starting today, no more candy for me for the next three weeks. I'm going to go now and sit in a corner and fret.

Source

Three Things Thursday

1) The NY Marathon Opening Day was yesterday and looks like I didn't get selected for the second time. I'm kind of bummed about this since some of my running friends from work are going. Oh well. I'll have to wait and see if I still want to go in 2013. 

2) It was Administrative Professional Day yesterday and Sister K sent me this really cute ecard! <3 My boss gave me a gift certificate to that place that rhymes with "tutu". He's just the best boss EVER!

3) I'm headed to Big Sur this weekend. There is probably a race involved with this trip. I'm not going to lie, I plan my vacations around races. Don't you? If you say 'no', you are not my people. Okay, you might still be my people but we are definitely not running kindred spirits. You don't want to be my kindred spirit of any kind? Yeah me either. Why am I having a convo by myself here?

4) Okay I lied, there is a fourth thing. I played tennis for the first time in a million years. I even dug out my tennis playing outfit. Which reminds me that I need to go and get a new outfit. Maybe there is something nice over at that place that rhymes with "tutu".

Eleven

Today's post is brought to you by the number 11...AH AH AH AH AH!

 
I was tagged by Krissy over at Shiwase Life for this 11 question thing. I was number 10 on her list of 10 people so I beat out some lucky sucker...just kidding Krissy. Thanks for thinking of me. No one has ever tagged me before because 1) I have no friends and 2) It's hard lame to play tag by oneself. This thing looks long and tedious but since this is my first tag and Krissy seems like such a sweet person on Twitter, I will play along.

Here is how it works:
1. Post these rules.
2. You must post 11 random things about yourself.
3. Answer the questions set for you in their post.
4. Create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.
5. Go to their blog and tell them you’ve tagged them.
6. No stuff in the tagging section like “you are tagged if you are reading this”. You (the blogger) legitimately have to tag 11 (or so) people.

11 Random Things About Me
1. I have memories from when I was only 6 months old. My mom has confirmed that these memories are accurate.
2. I've been on a boat invaded by real life pirates in the South Pacific.
3. Malaria almost took my life when I was a toddler.
4. I lived on a small island in Indonesia for 6 months.
5. I've passed out once from over exertion at a track meet.
6. My second sister and I share the exact same middle name.
7. I have a fear of heights.
8. My given Asian name means Jade in English.
9. I spoke only Vietnamese from the age of 4-8.
10. I fear going to the dentist more than the average person.
11. I'm attracted to the color purple.

Krissy's Questions

1. What is your favorite Amusement/Theme Park? Universal Studios
2. Would you rather visit the Ocean or the Mountains? Ocean
3. If you could visit any destination in the world, where would it be? Italy
4. What is the one food or drink you could NEVER EVER give up? Water
5. If there was a movie released about your life, who would play you? Michelle Yeoh, just because there aren't really that many Asian actress that are well known in the US.
6. What is your favorite quote or song lyric? Any and all quotes from the Princess Bride movie.
7. Do you have a crazy, far-fetched bucket list item in your life?  (I am sure you do!) What is it? I actually don't have a list. I know, so boring.
8. Where’s the best place to get breakfast/brunch where you live?  What do you order? I love the French Toast at Side Street Cafe (Newport Beach, CA).
9. If you could compete in any Olympic Sport, what would it be? Track and Field
10. Who is your favorite news anchor? Don't have one.
11. If you could have a $5K shopping spree at any store, which would you choose? Target

So the buck ends here since as I mentioned above, I have no friends. Plus I think everyone that I know online has already filled out one of these things. 

Eye On The Prize

There isn't a word to really describe how I feel after spending a couple of days at my parents' house where they fed me 3 large square meals a day with snacks in between and me not working out what-so-ever. The closest word I can think of is "poopy". Yeah I feel like poop. 

I just enjoy food way too much! I will always have a weakness for overindulging on my parents' cooking because they are such amazing cooks. Not complaining! Just emphasizing my lack of self control. 

I haven't gotten a decent run in since December 17. It wasn't because I was lazy. It was because I'm a procrastinator that worked too many hours the month leading up to Christmas, so I had to do all my shopping a couple of days before Christmas.

It's all over now! I'm doing a little happy dance on the inside. Good riddance, I don't have to do this again for another year. 

I finally got a run in today so things are looking up. I contemplated signing up for the SoCal Half and promised myself that if I put in enough training that I could reward myself by signing up for that race. However, I feel so sluggish from just a couple of days of non-activities that I am doubting whether or not I will be able to put in a good performance at that race. 

Frankly, I am a little over running a race for fun. That should be what training is for. I always feel like I use that line when I don't plan to or want to train hard. There are exceptions of course. I mean I did run Surf City this year while I was coming out of a cold for fun. I also ran the Knott's 10K with Sister K for fun. And I did run Big Sur and the Disney Half for fun so that I could take photographs along the way. But for all those other times when I said that I was running something for fun, it was mainly because I wasn't focused on training and decided to mail it in once again. I'm saying all this because 2012 is the year of no excuses...well it is for me. Unless I get sick, side-lined or if I am indeed actually running a race for enjoyment of the surroundings or running with someone. 

I will be posting up my 2012 fitness and personal resolutions in a couple of days to help me focus and realize all my goals this year.

The Black Friday 13.1 Miles Run

I slept in this morning.
I ate too much yesterday. 
I ran a half marathon on the treadmill to make up for yesterday.
I went to see Breaking Dawn.
I enjoyed it...very much! Don't judge me.
I spent time with my pup and my honey, represented here by a piggy and an angry bird. Just kidding.

I did not go shopping.
I had a wonderful day today! Happy Black Friday!

Random Wednesday Post

So I have a couple of random photos that I had meant to talk about in some earlier postings but somehow they never made it on the blog. So here they are all together in this misfit post. 

1) Sister K recently came back from a business trip to Orlando and she got me this Alice in Wonderland tea brewer from Disney World as a souvenir. You know because I love tea. Plus some coconut patties because I heart anything coconut. Thank you Sister K!

I haven't put it to use yet but I love the details. Such as this teacup lid ornament. Love!

And the cutouts in the shape of the the characters. If you look closely, you can see the White Rabbit.

2) I started shopping at Old Navy recently and I really like their clothes all of a sudden. I have seen them around my entire life and my sisters shop there frequently, not sure how I missed the boat. Maybe they just recently got better. Anyhow, I got this outfit for around $17, the shorts were on sale for $10 and the top was $7. That top is so soft and I love those shorts.

3) Boiling eggs! I eat a lot of hard boiled eggs. I never knew how to make them. I would wait for M to make them and then steal them for snacks. One day he told me it was time that I learn to make it myself. That was the best day ever. Now I supply my own hard boiled eggs. :)

All you have to do is bring a pot of water to a rolling boil (make sure you have enough water in there so that all the eggs will be submerged). Then gently put the eggs in (I use a soup ladle to make sure I don't drop the eggs in and crack them). Turn the heat down a bit so it doesn't boil over. Boil for 8 minutes. Remove from heat and carefully dump out the water (it's okay if you don't get all the water out). Run cold water over the eggs and just let them sit until cool. Put in storage container and refrigerate if you are not eating them right away. Now you have hard boiled eggs for the rest of the week.

4) Yep, I'm shopping for decor for a baby shower. This was a few weekends ago I think.

We didn't pick this one but I thought it was so cute!

5) Packed up Cabbage Patch dolls the other night and headed to see my favorite triplets. These bags were large! I had missed their birthday party this past weekend so this was a "redo".

Happy 2nd Birthday Girls! <3

Random enough for ya? It was for me!

Just Five More Minutes!

Not going to lie, for much of this week, this is what I felt like during most mornings when I am suppose to be up and out the door to the gym by 6am...

Doing two workouts a day is really not as easy as it seems. This is how I know that I do not have what it takes to train for a Triathlon. I just don't. I am enjoying my workouts. Just very tired at the end of the day. I mean, so tired that I'd rather sleep than eat. I know, right?

Source

And when I do eat...it's like this...

Source

 Why do you do this to yourself momma?!?

And work...

Source

What can I say about work? Oh okay, so it's not quite this bad but still!

Looking forward to the weekend already! But stay away from the 405 Freeway! You know what is happening this weekend.

Source

Also, I started taper this week for the upcoming SF Marathon. It is a little more than 2 weeks away. I haven't been in SF for awhile so it'll be fun to go back. I ran the half in 2009 and will be running the full this year. You can be sure that there will be a lot of eating. So much eating. You know...for carbo-loading. ^_^ I hope to get in some sight seeing as well but we'll see what I can fit in.

Photo credit to Sister K

Pistachio Fling

I got to the gym this morning and realized that I really was not in the mood to run on the treadmill. So I decided to go run outside. It's been quite awhile since I've ran outside during the week. No good reason really except I was avoiding the sun and uncontrollable environment. I think I just got too comfortable on the treadmill with the ability to control inclines and having my water and towel right there in front of me.

Let me just say that I don't know why I stopped running outside because it was such a nice run. I did 4.5 miles and it went by very quickly. It was already warm outside even at 6:45am so I was glad to be done with this early.

Speaking of warm, I tested out the Shuffle armband the other day on a run and discovered that the device was still getting some moisture due to condensation. The device is cold and my arm is warm and sweaty when I am working out and there is just no way to get around this fact. I just hope my new Shuffle will go at least another year before I have to replace again. I know for a fact that I will be going back to Apple in a few months to renew my warranty. 

Then at lunch I went to spin for an hour. I found my heart rate monitor that came with my Garmin 305 and had every intention of using it to see what my heart rate is doing during spin but at last the stupid thing would not catch my heart rate for some reason. I did some research and will try fiddling with it this evening to see if I can get it to work in time for tomorrow's spin class.

I was really hungry after spin today. Luckily I had picked up this turkey/tomato/lettuce/mayo wrap before class. I only ate half. I guess I was not as hungry as I had thought.

Now if I fit in a swim this evening, I can pretend that I am training for a triathlon. Speaking of triathlon, the Cupcake Activist posted about an upcoming event called Munchathon. It is essentially a 5K race that involves eating on the course. I'm tempted and curious at the same time about this inaugural event but not sure if I am ready to commit yet.

Someone has a grooming appointment tomorrow. I'm not going to say who but someone.

Lastly, I'm obsessed with pistachios. At first, I thought it was a one bag fling but now it is getting serious as I've already eaten 3 bags all myself in a period of 2 weeks with no signs of slowing down. I think I even love them more than almonds now. What? I need to slow this train down.

I just wish that they were all easy pickin'. A couple of them like to play hard to get but I am patient. Sooner or later I will get them out of their shells.

Goodbye Xin Loi Ba

So as I said in a previous post, I was going to cram as much into this weekend as possible so after my run this morning and some household chores, I went to the Veggie Grill for lunch.

I ordered the Crispy Chikin Sandwich with a side of Steamin' Kale with Miso-Ginger dressing. This was really amazing! Meat-lovin' dining companion had a bite and said that he can tell it wasn't really chicken but that it was really delicious. Still can't believe this was all vegan. My stomach was really happy!

I think meat-lovin' dining companion went next door to Chipotle and order a steak/chicken salad.

Then we went to the movies for another "double" feature, if you know what I mean. >_< We watched The Green Lantern and Bad Teacher. The Green Lantern was actually quite good and it was not only because of Ryan Reynolds. Sure he is easy on the eyes but the film was well made. What's not to like...Ryan Reynolds in skin tight superhero green tights...yes please!

Bad Teacher was actually my pick and it was pretty funny and everything that I thought it would be but somehow I thought it would be more than what it was. Not sure why but it is definitely a rental.

So MANY previews!

So MUCH popcorn!

After the movies, I had to make a stop at the Apple Store. Why?

Well, the Shuffle that I got for my birthday last year has been acting up lately. I know, I am having issue with another Shuffle...already. Why so soon? So I took it in and had the experts see if they could help me fix it. When they pulled up my info, I remembered that Sister K had named my Shuffle some random Vietnamese phrase (Xin Loi Ba). Why, Sister K? So embarrassing. LOL! Anyhow the experts informed me that I had water damaged. Curious because my device has never fallen into any water. I tried to explain to them that I run long distance and tend to sweat a lot when I am running for many hours. I also commented that I thought the device was meant to be used during exercise but maybe profuse sweating is not what they had in mind when they came up with the warranty. At first she told me that I could get a replacement for half the price that was paid for the original device seeing that they could not repair the one I had. I said okay but upon check-out she ended up replacing my device free of charge because she told me that she understood about the exercising and sweating. Apple is just awesome!

Right after I left the store, I saw one of the cart merchants selling Apple device accessories and cases so I ended up buying a sweat-proof armband for my new iPod Shuffle so that this will not happen again...at least not anytime soon.

I'm really tired now. Night!