Caffeine-Fueled Deep Thoughts
You know how people are always talking about cutting back on caffeine? Well, sometimes I think I should increase my caffeine intake. I don’t drink coffee, but I do drink black tea every morning. Some mornings I have two cups of tea, and then I feel the buzz! This morning I had a little extra time, so I sat in Starbucks, drinking tea and working on a blog post. It was incredible! Profound and philosophical. Just think, if I actually drank coffee– I would turn into a genius! OR, an insufferable bore. Later on when I read the post I was like “Um…. what?” I couldn’t figure out how to put it together in a coherent post. Sigh! The second-to-last day of NaBloPoMo is like when you’re doing an interval workout at the track- the penultimate lap is always the hardest. So in lieu of an “amazing” post full of deep thoughts, I present you with some questions. Would you continue to blog if no one was reading? I wouldn’t. I guess it would be nice to have an online journal, but for me the real satisfaction is in the connection with other bloggers. The same way I wouldn’t do my own version of NaBloPoMo in July- the fun is that we’re all doing it together. How are you feeling about NaBloPoMo ending? I’m guessing most people feel the same as I do- sad, but relieved. I’ll miss it- I’ve been loving all the daily posts. But I’m tired! I want to just curl up on the couch and binge watch episodes of “Christmas Cookie Challenge.” Or, finally finish the book I started three weeks ago. If you’re a non-blogger (hi Ashley!) or someone who reads but doesn’t comment, would you say hi in the comment section? I would love to hear from you! I’ll be back tomorrow for NaBloPoMo2023 wrap-up! Header photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash
Christmas Book Flood
In Iceland there’s a tradition called Jolabokaflod, or “Christmas Book Flood.” According to this article, gifts of books are exchanged on Christmas Eve, and everyone spends the rest of the evening reading and sipping hot cocoa. WELL. I like that tradition! We exchange our presents on Christmas Day, not Christmas Eve, but I still want a Christmas Book Flood! My dream is always, after all the presents are unwrapped, to relax on the couch (I’ll have Earl Grey tea instead of cocoa) with a large stack of books. Some years this works out better than others, but it’s what I’m hoping for on Christmas Day. Since I want a Christmas book flood, I have some books on my wishlist! Here’s my list so far: Choose Strong: The Choice That Changes Everything by Sally McRae. “Honest, relatable, and raw, every reader will connect with Sally’s story and see how they too can overcome even the most difficult situations in life and sport. Choose Strong is a story for everyone from every age and walk of life looking to live their strongest life.” Sally has an incredible podcast, and the only reason I haven’t read her book yet is that it’s not available at our library. It’s been on my Christmas list ever since it came out! Knee Ability Zero by Ben Patrick. Ben is the “Knees Over Toes Guy” and I heard him interviewed on a podcast a few months ago. He says the exercises in this book will “bulletproof your knees.” Um… yes, please! Agnostic: A Spirited Manifesto by Lesley Hazleton. I read about this book on Coco’s blog and it sounds interesting! “Inspired and inspiring, Agnostic recasts the question of belief not as a problem to be solved but as an invitation to an ongoing, open-ended adventure of the mind.” Dover One by Joyce Porter. If I get all the books on my list, this will probably be the first one I’ll read. Birchwood Pie describes it as a whodunit on the level of Agatha Christie, but with humor. Yes! I want it now!!! Lastly… My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante. Engie says this is one of her favorite books. She was our fearless leader for the Cool Bloggers Book Club so I think we can all trust her recommendations. Do you have any books on your wishlist? Header photo by Tom Hermans on Unsplash
Still “Between the Holidays” and Black Friday Shopping
Strangely, I can’t seem to fully move on from Thanksgiving. The house is halfway decorated for Christmas, but the Thanksgiving tablecloth is still on the table and pumpkins are scattered here and there. It could be that I’m just lazy- it takes work to de-pumpkin the house, and I just haven’t felt like doing it. But I did find the energy to do some shopping! In stores! On Saturday, I had to drop my daughter off at a band event, and rather than going all the way back home (and then returning to pick her up) I decided to kill time at the mall. I KNOW. The mall on Thanksgiving weekend sounds like a really, really bad idea. It would have been okay if I didn’t go to the most crowded store possible: It was a madhouse, but I got our “Twisted Peppermint” hand soaps for the bathrooms, and a candle. Today (Sunday) started off with a 20 mile run. Well… let’s just say every run can’t be magical. I felt okay until the last three miles, and after that it wasn’t pretty, but I got it done. I think it had something to do with the fact that the “feels like” temperature when I finished was 88 degrees. Ugh. Not okay. My breakfast was truly a “between the holidays” affair… And then in the afternoon I had to drive my daughter to another band event (she’s volunteering for their gift wrap fundraiser) and this time I found myself near an Old Navy. Oh, why not? I got two Christmas t-shirts for myself, and jeans, pajamas, and cozy socks for my daughter. Everything I got was 50% off. I don’t think I’ve ever done this much in-store shopping on Black Friday weekend. When I got home I was ready to sit on the couch and watch football (and light my new candle.) My lunch was the last piece of pumpkin pie: The last thing in the entire world I wanted to do was cook dinner, so we got pizzas. Ah, I love days like this… every once in a while. Tomorrow we’re back to school routine and early wake ups, and I’ll be upset that the house is a wreck. Oh well… it was worth it. If you celebrated Thanksgiving, are you ready for the week to be over? Did you do any shopping this weekend? Header photo by Maëva Vigier on Unsplash
Weekly Rundown- It Was a “Short-Long”
This was one of those weeks that seemed to go by so fast, but when I look back to last Sunday, it feels like a hundred years ago. My son calls these periods “Short-Longs,” short at the time but long in retrospect. I’m linking up as usual with Kim and Deborah for this Weekly Rundown, and of course I’m joining San for NaBLoPoMo. This was a busy week, but workouts happened! Let’s take a look… Sunday To go along with the general theme, this week was a “short long run.” I had 10 miles on my schedule, and I tried to run as much as possible on grass. As I’ve mentioned, my race in February has a lot of grassy stretches so I’m trying to train accordingly. This run felt really good, and then it was home and time for waffles and hanging out with my son! So good to have him home. Monday I did a strength workout at home. Inspired by Suzanne, I decided to try split squats with a barbell. I have a lighter barbell that can only be loaded with 50 pounds- but it was perfect for this workout. I did split squats with the barbell and then Bulgarian split squats with dumbbells. Then I finished up with calf raises and planks. Tuesday 4 mile run! I can’t remember anything about this run- but it looks like it was a beautiful day. Wednesday Well, my son and I had planned to go to the gym together, but he was sick. So I went without him- he said we were going to do squats, deadlifts, benchpress, and lat pulldowns so I followed his instructions! Thursday This was our “Turkey Trot Truant” day, where instead of running a race, my husband and I just went for a run together. 4 fun miles! And then it was a day of cooking and eating! My son rallied. He was sick, but not so sick he couldn’t enjoy the day (unlike Christmas of 2021 when he had Covid and was so sick he couldn’t sit at the table for dinner.) No, this time he was able to eat with the rest of us! Friday 3 mile run… …followed by some bodyweight strength. Runner’s Touch and deadbugs… someone asked last time what “deadbugs” are. Here’s a short video! Saturday Off! My son flew back to Texas early in the morning. Luckily my husband loves going to the airport (for real) so I got up to say goodbye and then went back to bed. I was able to sleep another hour or so before getting up for work. At night, we watched Baylor lose again, this time by a touchdown scored in the last 20 seconds of the game. It’s been a VERY TOUGH YEAR for us Baylor fans. But in the words of Charlie Brown: Just wait till next year. Sunday On tap for today- 20 mile long run! I’m kind of scared. I keep reminding myself how great my 18 miler felt two weeks ago. And I have my Tailwind ready to go! Gulp. So it was a good week. I got a little more sleep because my daughter had no school. In addition to celebrating Thanksgiving, we got our Christmas tree up (how exciting!) Just three weeks till my son comes home again for Christmas break. How was your week? Did it feel extremely long or extremely short?