The Last Regular Apperance of Wonder Woman

It starts, as very good story starts, with a guy. A guy who really pissed me off.

He was a guy who just didn't get it. Who thought, like so many people, that rape was about sex. I should have taken the opportunity to educate him, to let him know it has nothing to do with sex, and that it has everything to do with power and taking that power from someone else.

Instead, I got really pissed off and ended our two year friendship right then and there. Not my best moment, but it was a defining moment for me. It made me realize what I needed to do: educate people. I would use my "one and only" marathon and the Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault to do just that.

I was really nervous to announce my cause to the world. It's not a trendy cause, it's not one everyone likes to talk about, but it's so damn important. Yesterday, someone compared some interesting statistics to me. 1 in 4 women in the US are victims of some type of sexual assault. If you play Russian Roulette, you have a 1 in 6 chance of getting the bullet.

As a woman, I have better odds of coming out alive playing Russian Roulette than of being in a safe and consensual sexual relationship.

It's a sobering thought.

But you all embraced it, you supported me immediately with words of encouragement and thousands of dollars in donations. You read my training blogs, my triumphs of coming back from injury with each amazing long run, culminating in the best first marathon experience I could have ever hoped for. The staff at MOCSA made me feel like somewhat of a celebrity. When I stop and think about all of this, it still touches my heart in such a way that I feel incredibly humbled, grateful and blessed.

When I was a client a MOCSA, I really only knew my therapist and the members of my group therapy. As a fundraiser for MOCSA, I had the opportunity to get to know some of the most amazing staff of that organization. It was and has been one of the greatest privileges of my life to work with and to represent that organization. This organization made it really hard to leave Kansas City.

I thought about all of this as I donned my Wonder Woman costume for my last obligatory appearance in fulfillment of the deal I made with everyone a year and a half ago. It was bittersweet - I have loved the last 18 months and what it has done for both my running and my spirit. I'm not going to lie, though, I am looking forward to dressing simply for the weather in my next race.

This morning's 5K was the Colder Boulder - the shorter, winter version of the famous Bolder Boulder 10k. For those of you who haven't been to Boulder - it's a beautiful college town, with the 'hills' of the front range in the background in pretty much any westward view. If the way they put on Colder Boulder is any indication of how the spring 10k is ran, it's an amazing race and well worth a trip out to Colorado. And, naturally, you'd get to see me :)

Seriously, CU is a beautiful campus.

But the 5K. I had forgotten Tjom at home, so I was like, well,  I guess I'll just run. I started with the 11:00/mile group and just went by feel. The course is hilly, but I like hills, so I enjoyed the climbs and descents. The finish inside Folsom field was really nice - and I just finished behind some fellow super heroes so insisted I get a photo with them:

A few members of the Justice League ... and a Ninja Turtle.

I still have no idea what my finish time was - and results haven't been posted yet. But it doesn't matter. This was the culmination of such a wonderful year, I don't care how fast or how slow I was.
Ok, so I care a little, but there is so much more that matters. And perhaps, what matters most is this:

Thank you. Thank you so much. I will never forget it.

Love to you all.
-Eliz

I wonder what they think

Today, I threw on my Rock On! Lake Perry Trail Run shirt - the shirt that represents the hardest race I have taken on to date. After I did, I paused and looked at myself in the mirror and I wondered what people thought when they saw me in this shirt, with its three different distances written around the bottom of the logo.

Did they assume I ran the 5k? The half? The 50k?

Did they assume I really sucked at it or that I did really well?

Then, I got super annoyed with myself because the honest answer is mostly like that no one cares, that anyone would half glance at it, see 'trail run' and move on with their life, without a second thought. Or really, with any thought on it hardly registering at all.

I often wish I didn't care so much about what other people thought about me. I mean, I'm growing my hair out because guys in general just don't like girls with short hair. That and I don't think I'll ever find anyone who can just magically cut my hair to be short and awesome like Chelsea did at Chop Tops Westport. Free PSA: Kansas City people, totally go see Chelsea at Chop Tops. She's awesome. And hilarious. I miss her already.

Ok, ok I'm also growing out my hair because my own self-confidence depends on that little extra bit of feminine definition that comes with longer locks. I wish it didn't, but it does. I have no regrets on chopping it off, though. I do love my hair ... I just want it to be about 3 inches longer, that's all.

How did I get from running to my hair?

Oh well. The point is, I need to stop caring so much about how everyone else perceives my running and my hair. As long as they see me as a kind and genuine person, what else matters? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

The Red Paper Clip

Today, while unpacking, I found the red paper clip. The same one that was on my coffee table that you picked up and fiddled with for what seemed to be an eternity, right before you broke my heart.

I picked that paper clip up and it took me back to over a year ago. Funny, it seemed so long ago, but I still remember every detail of that moment. I sort of wish I didn't. I sort of wish I didn't remember a lot of things when it comes to you. And I sort of wish I didn't sort of wish all that. It's complicated.

I don't know why I didn't throw that damn paper clip away months ago. I'd found it several times with the same effect, but I would just throw it back in the junk drawer, to be forgotten until I found it again while looking for something else.

Today I threw it away. I don't want memories of you in my new home. And I'm not saying it to be mean, I'm just saying it as a fact. My new home is a clean slate, and I can't have that if you are still laying around with that stupid, red paper clip.

Let me take a moment to be sappy about the Royals

I moved to the Kansas City area in 2001.
I didn't really care about the Royals at all until about 2004, when a co-worker of mine and I would give each other the raspberries about any Royals-Twins series.

See, I grew up thinking Kirby Puckett was the most awesome guy ever.
Then, I loved Corey Koskie, because he was the Twins' thirdbaseman and that was my base when I played softball.
And by then we had Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau playing for the Twinkies, so we all know I just got swept off my feet.

I didn't want to like the Royals. Ugh, the Royals. What kind of name is Billy Butler? What kind of weirdo is Zach Greinke?

But then, I went to a few games at Kauffman. Man, the K is one of the best ball fields in the MLB. How can you not love a game there?

And at that time, the Royals still had awesome players like David DeJesus, who simply looked like he was having a ball every time he played.
I began to appreciate Billy Butler, because he was the only Royals player to choose a country song for his introduction. And damn, it was so obvious he loved playing for Kansas City.

So, I bought a Royals hat.

I saw more games at the K. And would post about it on Facebook.

I bought a Royals shirt. And then another one. And then I wanted to buy, like 5.

Actually, this one I tried to permanently borrow from my friend. She noticed.

I dressed up in Royals gear for my pre-marathon costumed run in Ireland.

I didn't even realize it, but I had become a full-blown Royals fan. Those boys in blue just grow on ya. You can't help but love them, especially when you are me, who roots for the underdog everytime. Unless it's the Olympics. Then it's USA all the way. Except when Mo Farrah got back to back golds on the 5 and 10k. But that was just amazing.

So, there I was, getting excited when we were in first place for a moment, hoping my dad's Tigers would choke (damnit, Joe Nathan never lets his team down).

And I sat, glued to the TV for 3.5 hours last night (missed the first half of the game). It was late, innings 10 and 11 left the winning run on 3rd. At that point, I usually just go to bed. But I couldn't. I couldn't walk out on the Royals. They were playing so hard. Brandon Finnegan had become my new favorite player (if only I had been that cool under pressure at 21 - TWENTY ONE!). I couldn't bear to watch, but I couldn't bear to leave.

Then ... it happened. WIN!!!!! I wanted to be at the K celebrating with everyone else. Hugging strangers. At least I hope that happened.

Guess what guys, I'm a total sap now, because I am going to use the Royals sappy catch phrase:

I believe.

Sigh. I totally believe. Let's go have a Cinderella moment. She wore blue, too, ya know.

It's like I was a cross county manager all over again

I'm not sure how many are aware of this, but I'm currently on my parents' couch in Iowa while I'm in-between apartments in Kansas and Colorado.

Ok, ok, ok. Not really on their couch. I have a bed. And I'm rarely on the couch at all. I prefer the recliner. And I am still working remotely for my current job, so I still spend the majority of my day in front of my computer.

ANYWAY ... that's not the point.
The point is that I was lucky enough to happen to be around, with little to do, the same weekend as my High School Alma Mater's cross country invitational. In high school, long before I was a runner, I was at least smart enough to know I wanted to hang out with runners .. and not those silly track people who just sprint around in an oval - distance runners who aren't afraid to get dirty.

That's right. I was a manager for a cross country team. I lettered all four years.

Hey. It's actually quite a bit of work, especially the weekend of our own invitational.

I was the official timer. I know. It was quite stressful for a 17 year old.

This time around, I was hoping I'd have a different job.

Nope, same job. Well, sometimes I was the backup, so it wasn't that big of deal.
It did feel a little different. Those kids seemed so small. And I really appreciated the finishes a lot more - especially those kids who gave all they had to get that one last person who was in front of them. I couldn't help myself and was cheering rather loudly for those kids.

Then there were times we had to stop the clock before the last few got in. It made me sad, because I know they still want an official time. "They will just be last." HEY. It may be last place, but it could be a PR.

I mean, it was highly unlikely, given the dew point was 70* and it had rained the night before and on and off during the meet, but still. Us slow pokes who have no chance of placing high still have a very important person to beat: the person we were at the race before.

I didn't win any of those arguments. the show had to keep rolling. But their coaches kept time so I know they still got what they really needed.

After the meet ended and everyone skee-daddled, I stayed behind to help clean up. And, what do you know? I found myself helping my old coaches take down the camp. I know this will totally make me sound like an old farty adult, but back in my day, the coaches were not the ones taking down camp. The runners and managers were. And no one was leaving sweatshirts and tshirts and crap behind. Maybe that's just what an awesome manager I was. Who knows.

Still I enjoyed it. I was wonderful catching up with the coaches, and I even saw my favorite teacher from junior high, whose youngest was running JV that day.

All in all, the one thing I took away was this: I kind of want to coach cross country.

Great. As if I need another thing on my "to do" list.

Remembering

Today is, as you all well know, September 11.

I don't remember what it's like to hear someone say "nine-eleven" without thinking of hijacked planes, where I was when I first heard the news, and the consequences of that day.

There are images plastered in my mind, images like these:

I was a freshman in college in the fall of 2001. That morning, I was at my workstudy, in the Overseas Study Office, when my supervisor asked me if I had known anyone working in the World Trade Center in New York City.

"No," I said.
"An airplane just hit one of them."
"Hmmm."

"Hmm." That was my response. Given the magnitude of that day, it seems insane that it didn't immediately register that this was really bad. It wasn't until I had gone to class and was told to just go back to my dorm and watch the news that it finally hit me.

I feared this would herald a huge war, that it would require using the draft, that the lives of those I knew and loved the most would drastically change. I was lucky, because, for the most part, I was wrong. Still, every year, I grieve for those who lost their own loved ones on that Tuesday morning and I grieve for those who lost loved ones over the last 13 years as a consequence of that day. For me, a childhood class clown, Sgt Casey Byers, was killed by an IED in 2005. Two men I recently dated and still care deeply for, served in Iraq and miraculously have come home safely - one once and the other four times. I still fear for the day they may or may not have to go back, or go anywhere. I'm not as oblivious to the world as I was when I was 18 and it frightens me, even if it's not my job to be scared for them anymore.

I still haven't watched "United 93", "Flight 93", "World Trade Center", or "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close". I haven't watched "Zero Dark Thirty" or read any related books. My closest contact with anything physical from that day was when I lived in DC and got on the Metro at the Pentagon stop, and even then, all I could see was construction as they repaired that section of the building and built a memorial. I never stopped and looked too long because I didn't want any guards to think I was suspicious.

This year is actually the first year I did anything other than watch the memorial services at Ground Zero in New York City on TV.

As I drove to my parents' house this morning from my best friend's home in the Quad Cities, I found a radio station on my satellite radio that devoted 3 hours to the events leading up to and after 9/11/01. There were incredible stories, like the one of Jose Melendez-Perez, who stopped the 20th hijacker from entering the US, and possibly was the reason United 93 didn't make it to the Capitol Building. Or the one of the Stairwell B survivors - the only people to make it out of the collapsed Twin Towers alive. And the emotional interview with Aaron Brown, the CNN anchor who, for some, became the face of any related news. Did you know that day was his first day at CNN?

And now, I'm sitting at my parents computer, writing this, as I have the History Channel playing in the background - with it's entire day dedicated to remembering what happened on that day.

So today, I am really remembering, because so much has changed, both with our country and with my own life. And the one thing that I can take away from all of this, is that we, not as Americans, or patriots, or as Christians, but we, simply as human beings, need to love more and hate less. I am going to try my best to do that every day to honor those whose lives were lost on that day and in the days since.

I hope you do, too.

-Eliz

The last race as a Kansas City resident: Leawood Labor Day 5K

I'm not one for signing up for 5Ks in order to run for a PR.

But hey, I was doing speed sessions again this summer and I managed to tick off over a minute back in January, when I wasn't doing speed work. 

Should have known that ONLY doing speed sessions and no other running would not equal a PR. 

But oh well. 

I donned the WW uniform, charged up Tjom the Garmin and found a fellow speed session person at the start. We were both going for sub-30, so I was happy to have someone with whom to run.

As I just now realized I have my garmin set to only give distance alerts at mile intervals and NOT actually take laps, I have no idea what my mile splits were. My best guesses are around 9:30 for the first two miles and then about 12:00 for the last mile (or even slower ... UGH).

What happened, you ask?

Um, I hadn't really been running, duh!

Also, the cool air was quite deceiving ... although it felt nice just standing around, the dew point was still above 70*, so it makes running not a lot of fun. So, I cramped and burned in mile 3. I kept trying to tell myself I could keep going, and perhaps I could have if I had downed a coconut water that morning, but I didn't.

Oh well.

The race was still good, I still pushed myself and the pancakes afterwards were delicious. I got to see a few people from my speed session group, so that was nice. All in all, not bad for the last race where it will say "Kansas City" beside my name in the record books. Would rather it didn't say 32:08 for time, but whatever.

Also, I ended up with awesome hair and a free water bottle. Not as cool as the trail nerd coffee mug, but I'll take it:

I'm also realizing selfies just make it easier to notice the early-30s wrinkles that are appearing around my eyes. Sigh.

Because I love Maybe Matilda - 11 Questions

So I started following this blog called "Maybe Matilda", and a really love it. She recently answered questions from her readers and threw 11 back. So here I am answering them. 

1. Since I admitted my celebrity crushes, past and present . . . go ahead and name one (or two, or three) of yours. Male or female. Heaven knows I have plenty of each.

My biggest celeb crush is Leonardo DiCaprio. Oogled over him since he had a guest spot on Growing Pains, cried when his Romeo died and just have loved how well he's aged. If only he'd stop being interested in super models .... sigh .... 

I so hope he frequents Colorado. I might just learn to ski for him. I bet he skis.

Other crushes include Kevin Spacey (purely for his insane talent), Johnny Gelecki (nerdy = hawt) and, I admit, a certain blogger in a running blog community named Mr. Bacon. *blush*

2. What’s your favorite book? The Godfather. Love it so much, I have a quote from it tattooed on my foot.

The last words spoken by the Don

3. What are your 5 favorite TV shows?

Oh my goodness. Ok.

1. Alias

2. Survivor

3. The Mindy Project

4. Leverage

5. Motive

4. Guilty pleasure?

Sleeping in on weekday mornings! I've been doing that way too often, but luckily I'm still getting my workouts in. Most of the time ;-)

5. Any goals you’re currently working on?

Yes! This is pretty well-known, but I want to lean up and try to get on American Ninja Warrior! I actually just downloaded a 4-week program from Natalie Jill Fitness, who is all about a gluten-free lifestyle and bodyweight excercises, which is exactly what I'm looking for - I'm so excited for a new challenge!

6. A trend or style you’ve wanted to try, but been scared to?

I was so nervous to get a pixie cut and when I went super short after the first chop, I did cry. Multiple times. But I'm so glad I did it! My long hair was pretty and I could do a lot with it, but it was refreshing to have the short cut. I am growing it back out ... but will probably never grow it past a shoulder-length bob again.

7. A skill you’d love to learn?

Parkour. It would be so BA. And I would do it in MC-Hammer pants.

Can't you just see me doing this???

8. If you had a day to yourself with unlimited money to spend and no obligations, what would you do?

Oh that's a hard one. Honestly, I've never had a "spa day" so that would be a special treat. But it would also be fun to take a 24 hours trip to Portland and visit one of my favorite roommates.

9. A person (living or dead) you’d love to meet?

Saint Paul. His story is really a fascinating one to me.

10. If you weren’t doing the career you’re doing now (being a stay-at-home mom counts as a career), what would you want to be doing instead?

I never thought I would want to be a stay at home mom, but spending all day devoted to my future family sounds really wonderful today. Then I could be a Girls on the Run coach, which I think would be particularly rewarding. Being a high school or junior high cross country coach would be pretty awesome, too.

11. What are the names you want/wanted to give your kids until your meanie-pants spouse vetoed them?

Ok background for non-readers of Maybe Matilda. When this woman was pregnant with her littler girl, she wanted to name her Matilda, which got vetoed by her husband. She ended up using the name for her Etsy shop and then her blog. 

Since I have no spouse, I'll tell my friend Piper's story, who wanted Noah as a boy's name. Her hubby vetoed it. We were both sad about that. 

So, it's been like, 2 months ...

Whoops. My bad. 

Clearly, I haven't been doing anything exciting as far as running goes, although I did start speed sessions again, which seemed so much harder this year than they did last year. I still enjoy the challenge, though, and it's been a great workout. 

I guess my biggest news is non-running related: I've been offered and accepted a job with Lockheed Martin in their Aurora, Colorado office. 

Yes. I get to live in Colorado. 

I GET TO LIVE IN COLORADO!!!!!! 

The job itself is really awesome, although I doubt I'll get to talk about it much, because it's a DoD contract, working on TriCare Health Claims. Essentially, I think it's awesome because I get to continue to be one of the good guys in the public health/health care world. 

I don't know when the job will start, as I'm still in the middle of an extensive background check. But in the meantime, my lease is up in Kansas City, so I still have to say good bye and head north to hang out with my parents and friends back home in Iowa. 

Although I love my parents, I think we are all hoping it's a very short stay with them :) 

In slightly more personal news, I've finally hit post-marathon depression. Since I really stopped training, I've gained back a little weight that was lost and, as a former overweight person, it hit me particularly hard, and I struggled a very long time, trying to understand why this was happening. Sure, I wasn't running as much, but I was going to Crossfit at least 4 days a week and still running about once a week. 

Well, I finally realized that I had started taking a preventative medication for my migraines about the same time I started marathon training last year ... and I'm hypothesizing that, without all that running, the potential side effect of weight gain finally caught up with me. 

So, I'm getting myself off all medications and really cleaning up my diet (yet again). And quite frankly, if I'm going to win American Ninja Warrior in two years, I need to get as lean as possible. 

That is the new challenge. First step will be to tackle a few obstacle course races. I'm leaning towards the Spartan series, because that will give me three levels to tackle. And with my new home in the mountains, there will be plenty of climbing to do. 

Back to leaving Kansas City. It's very bittersweet for me. I find myself not wanting to pack up my apartment, because it's been home for the past two years. It's hard to think about leaving my co-workers, MOCSA and my friends and family that are here. I think the first time I left, I always thought in the back of my mind that I would be back. But this time, I know I'm not coming back for anything more than a visit. It's hard to close a chapter. I suppose that is a good thing, because I've had other chapters that were way too easy to close. Anyways, I guess what I'm trying to say is, I'll miss you KC, but I'm still not staying. The mountains are just too tempting. 

Hospital Hill Run 5K - Sweating is more fun with friends!

**My apologies for such a tardy race report ... I have no excuse other than writer's block. The words just weren't coming out 'right'.**

I hadn't planned on running Hospital Hill this year. Honestly, last year's experience was terrible. So terrible, in fact, that I didn't even write about it. That race happened about 2 weeks after being dumped by ice cream guy (remember him??) and it was just really hard to be there, knowing he was somewhere in that crowd as well.

In any case, somehow, a good work friend and I worked out a deal that if she signed up for the 5K, I woud walk/run it with her. We could walk as much as she wanted. So ... there I was.

To be honest, I really enjoyed doing this race with my friend. We started out with a nice easy jog, and I kept telling her that whenever she wanted to walk to just let me know. I knew we had to make the 5K fun so that it would be a good experience for her, so that's exactly what I did - I acted crazy every time I saw a camera, making face, jumping around and just having a good time. And that made my friend have a good time, too!

The course was completely different from previous years, since it was being run on Friday night instead of Saturday morning. Different and SO MUCH HILLIER! Goodness! We walked most of the second mile, but it was so warm and humid that I didn't mind. Like, really warm and humid. Like, I really stunk from all the sweating I did.

**Side note: does anyone feel like, as their fitness increases, they sweat MORE? is that a good thing? am I just weird????**

At the last stretch, I told her that it was all downhill from here so we could run the rest of it. I did my best to not speed up too fast, but when we could see the finish line, I asked if she wanted to speed up, and we did! It was so much fun whizzing past everyone - and I know it was a big push for my friend. I was so happy for her when we finished. I remember the feeling of finishing my first 5K and what a huge accomplishment that felt like and I hope my friend felt that way, too.

This may be the only summer race I do. I really want to just focus on my training and speed work and really tackle a fall 5k for a huge PR. Of course, there is a trail race next month and I could use another coffee mug (I love KC Trail Nerd race swag!) ..... 

It may be time to retire

... from half marathons, anyway.

This past Saturday was the Rock On! Lake Perry spring trail runs, which included a 5K, 13.1 miles and a 50K. I chose to do the half because I didn't feel like I was running enough and needed something for which to train.

I chose a trail run because I really like the Kansas City Trail Nerd Events; they do a really good job and profits are generally put right back into the trails. I also figured it would be a service to my knees ... you know, take it easy on them for once.

I'm always a little self-conscious when I first come to a race; it's not as if everyone shows up in Wonder Woman costumes. But after I got all my gear on and wandered around, I got multiple "Love your outift"s, and that always eases my nerves.

All Wonder Woman-ed up and ready to go ... I guess ...

I also ran into a person I knew, sort of a friend of a friend and it was good to catch up with him and learn the exciting news of his growing family. He was one of the crazies who was doing the 50K. Actually, after doing the half, I may want to call him insane.

In any case, trail runs are a bit more relaxed, which I totally enjoy, and as we started, I just crossed my fingers that I wouldn't crash on the trails again (SPOILER: I didn't!).

The race itself was tough. It was a humid, overcast day, with threats of storms on Friday never happening and more threats forecasted for the afternoon. I didn't quite realize how humid it was until I was dripping sweat less than 3 miles in. But, it was a trail race, so you just take your time, walk the hills and try your best. I found myself at the tail end of the pack, playing leap frog with a woman who was going to tell her son that she got to run with Wonder Woman, and catching a few others for awhile, then losing them and then catching them again (or vice versa). Things seemed to be going okay until about mile 10. At that point, I just wanted to stop. There was actually a part in the course where there was a short but steep downhill and I just stopped and stared at it. Then I said, "I don't wanna go down this!" Literally. I said that outloud.

But, I kept on, running when I could, walking when I was too tired. This race had really taken it all out of me. The last 1.5 miles, I was completely out of water because I stupidly hadn't refilled my less than half empty bottle at the last aid station, and when I came upon a main station, I was told I just had to go "up the hill" and then I was done.

ANOTHER HILL?!!??!

I sighed, and turned to go up the hill.  Jog, walk, jog, walk, damnit I just want to be done, so I jogged, caught the guy in front of me and said, come on, let's finish this last little bit. Then as I came upon the finish line, I remembered I had to run in backwards, so I did.

And then I was done. I was hot, sweaty, tired, and done. Done with the race and done with half marathons. They have always been my kryptonite and I have no clue why I keep doing them. I have some unfinished business with a few around Kansas City, but the business will stay unfinished.

There were hot dogs, potato salad, chips and watermelon for everyone. The gentleman serving asked me if I wanted a Superdog; I laughed and said just for the moment I wanted watermelon. So I had a few slices, then a few more and some chips. Then, I got some Nuun from my car and added it to my water, changed out of my sweaty clothes and finally got the Superdog.

I was super exhausted. Somehow, I made it home, gave Jeff some attention and then tortured myself with this:

Ice bathing might be the most masochistic thing I've ever done.

When I survived that and was all showered, I rewarded myself with a nap, and then some of this:

Smithwicks in a Kilkenny glass. Irish all the way.

Not that I'm not glad that I did the race; it was a huge mental and physical challenge for me and it certainly kicked my ass, but I still won, because I gave all I had and I finished. I just don't want to do another one again. I'll stick with my 5ks and maybe even a 10k on the trails .... and on the roads.

Swag:

Gratuitous Jeff photo:

If a runner falls alone on the trails, she DOES make a sound

Sunday was my last day for a long run on the trails before the trail half marathon next week.

Tangent: This marathon has really made me crazy. Before the marathon, I never would have signed up for any type of half marathon with only a month to go. Now, I totally get all you crazy people that do spur of the moment races. I'm also one of you.

It was a lovely morning, which was particularly wonderful because it had been raining for most of the week. It's amazing to wear shorts and a tank top after a week of long pants and jackets! 

I had never run on the SMP trails before, so this was an entirely new experience. Luckily, the trails are extremely well marked, with maps at every point each of the 4 different loops meet each other. 
The trails are also just beautiful. 

I enjoyed the trails for about an hour and a half, meeting the occasional runner and mountain biker, but mostly startling squirrels and picking up dust in my socks. It was pure bliss, so much so that I started to space off and think about other stuff. I don't even really know what I was thinking about but all the sudden, there was a THUD! and an "Aaaaaaayeeeaaaahhhhhh" and before I knew I was on the ground.

I like to think my descent to the ground was graceful, but I'm pretty sure it looked like this:

Luckily, I managed to fall to the side rather than right on my front.

I laid there in shock for a few minutes and then I realized I should get up in case someone heard my yelp and wanted to make sure I was okay. 

(for the record, no one heard, but I guarantee I still made that sound) 
 
I assessed the damage, rinsed off scrapes with my water and continued on. Luckily, I only had about 30 minutes left, so I took it easy, walking during the rocky parts and trying to not space off so much. I tripped again, but caught my self. Goodness.

When I got back to my car, I was glad I had at least brought some baby wipes to clean things up a bit.
And here are the battle wounds that I came away with:

Pretty black and blue today.

I only hope that if I fall on Saturday, I don't tear my Wonder Woman costume. That will just be the worst.

Catching Up

Please forgive my social media hiatus. I always find Lent to be a good excuse to "disconnect" and find other things to occupy my time, like reading books (got 4 done in 5 weeks!).

In the time I've been absent, I've ran 2 5Ks, kept up with Crossfit, decided I needed to run more, got a tattoo, cut my hair even shorter, freaked out about shorter hair (twice), interviewed for a job in Portland, Oregon, got rejected by said job, took my parents out to a delicious meal for my birthday, visited my wonderful friend Maranda in Springfield, and got super excited about spring.

The running.

My first 5K was a trail 5K with the local Trail Nerds. I just want to say, I love Trail Nerd Events - I'm actually really sad I am just now attending them, when I've known that trail running is the best type of running for me. This 5K was called Mrs. Robinson's Romp and I got another coffee mug (seriously, best race swag ever). I also really enjoyed the 5K. It was a deceptive loop - the kind where you aren't really sure if you are going in a loop because there is a hairpin in part of it. So I thought I was crazy, thinking this was super easy going out and then wondering why there was so much uphill work on the way back. Yeah. They should have called this one the Psycho one.

But I still had fun, as evidenced by the photos I posted on FB. And my parents came out, so it's always fun to have someone cheering in the crowd.

The second 5K was during my trip to Springfield to visit Maranda - it was the first year of this 5K and I'm so glad we did it because the family putting it on was so invested in it being a success. We pre-fueled the evening before with sushi and girly martinis ... delicious, but not the best choice the night before the race. Maranda threw up halfway through the course and I ended up with the worst side stitch I'd ever had, but somehow we ended up with awards (Maranda won!!!! and I got third in my AG). We had a good time, and I was a popular superhero that day.

So my super awesome haircut was also super assymetric and drove me nuts while I worked out because I felt off balance (there was this chunk of hair that would flop around on only one side of my head ... it was annoying). So, I told my awesome stylist Chelsea to go even shorter. And while I looked cute, I ended up in tears. Twice. I called my friend Piper and sobbed "Even Army people are allowed longer hair than this!". Lesson learned. Growing hair back to original short cut. I'm pretty sure Chelsea is going to fire me.

Short hair that made me freak out.

Fine. Fine. I got a tattoo to honor the HUGE awesomeness of last year in general, but mostly everything that came with marathon training. It's my favorite quote, from my favorite book - the last words said by Vito Corleone as he dies in the rose garden in "The Godfather".

And yeah, I got to spend a weekend with my dear friend, Laura, after I interviewed for a job in Portland. I seriously love that city. She calls my visits the 'convince Elizabeth to move here' visits and if anything, she's definitely convinced me I need to visit once a year. And yeah, I wouldn't mind making Portland home, either. But, in due time, in due time.

And since I decided I'm not running enough, I thought signing up for a trail half would provide good motivation. HAHAHAHAHA.
It's now in a little less than 3 weeks and I'm seriously behind in training. Oh well. At least I know I will have fun.

So this happened Friday

Waiting at my favorite salon for my stylist to come get me

In the chair, playing with my hair

hahahahaha ....

..... hahahahahahaha

what's gonna happen???

whatever it is, I'm ready.

oohhhh SNIP, my stylist is doing something behind my back.
literally.

There goes my hair!

4 swatches for locks of love. apparently, the average person only has 2.

Finished product!

Yay for donating hair!

Awesome things that happened last week

1. It snowed a lot and so I had 2 snow days. Awesome.

2. I had to leave the cold & snow to travel to Phoenix, AZ for work. Awesome.

3. I got to run outside, in the winter, in shorts and a t-shirt. Awesome.
 
4. I got to have fun and drinks with co-workers and laugh and be myself with them. Awesome.
 
5. I got $5 from my hotel for declining room service. This led to free drinks. Awesome. 
 
6. Dinner one night came with complemintary cotton candy. Awesome.

7. I didn't wear a coat for 2 whole days. In February. Awesome.

8. I got to meet up with a fellow Dublin Marathoner (Awesome)

& try some honey flavored whiskey. Awesome. (also, Wild Turkey American Honey is really smooth)

9. I got home in time to see an old friend who now lives in Philly and loves it there so she usually is only in Kansas City during holidays when I'm in Iowa. This also meant I got to see the rest of her family, which includes my bestie who is so busy at work I don't even see her even though we live in the same city. Awesome.

The Psycopath of least resistance is uphill on the way back

That's the theme for the Kansas City Trail Nerd's Psychopathic 5K. They love hosting the "toughest 5k in the Midwest" so much there is an ice version and a summer version.

Being me and seeing this was a $20 5K, I immediately claimed it as my January Wonder Woman run. Who cares how hard it is?

All I knew was that running trails was fun, crossfit was making my legs super strong (even if my lungs were taking a bit of a break) and I had gotten my old trails running buddy to join me. It was going to be a good day.

The morning turned out even better than anticipated, with lows in the 40s. In January! Yessss, particularly since the following morning's low was supposed to be in the single digits. Sometimes, I feel like the luckiest runner in the world.

As I got myself ready for the run, aka, pulling my star spangled shorts over my capris and situating my gold and red headband just right, I got the usual surprised glances thrown my way. In all honesty, I always get a little self conscious (<--- did I spell that right? It's not looking correct this morning but spell check on this thing sucks) until I get the first "your outfit is awesome".

The race started, and it was immediately uphill. Sweet.
I'll spare you most of the boring details, but the race definitely was hard. But guess what? It was also tons of fun! The nice thing about trail races, especially hard ones, is that lots of people walk. So, you just do your best, take walk breaks on those awful uphills and gleefully bounce your way around on the downhills. My running buddy and I had so much fun on this race that we decided to have a standing "run date" once a month to run these trails.

So lesson of the day: hard can be fun! Wa-hoo!

At the end of the race, I was tasked with a pose to do as I crossed the finish line. I did the pose but there was no photographer capturing us as we crossed, so I went back later and posed again in front of it. I did a nice job embarassing myself and then later that day, realized I did the wrong pose. That's embarrassing in an entirely different way.

So, I owe my brother an extra race so I can do the pose he actually requested. Good thing there is a 5k on my birthday I can do :). 

And, in case you are wondering, I'm totally doing the summer version of this race. It was that awesome, even if I did finish in a snail's time of 39:something.

More Reasons Crossfit is Like Running

-You only do warmups if you are in a group and everyone is doing them.
-It's awesome when the girls beat the guys.
-Everyone is at different levels, but no one cares. If you finish, you are awesome.
-The work is all on your own, but you are still a part of a "team" and everyone cheers for everyone else.
-PRs
-Planks still suck no matter how much you do them.

Cool things I did at Crossfit this week

Power cleans

Turkish Get Ups

 

I used a pink kettlebell. It was fun.

Squat cleans 


 

This gal is badass. I cannot squat clean that much. Not even close.

 Also, I ran 3-4 miles with my good friend Amber. Thank goodness she has a run club and keeps me accountable. I'm enjoying the minimal commitment of running once a week while I go crazy on the Crossfit Kool-Aid. I can't wait to see what kind of times I bang out when this fall in 5Ks and the half marathon.

Being my own superhero in 2014

I'm not quite sure how the title works, but here's what I want to accomplish this year: 

Running-related goals:

• Run one race every month. 
• Hit non-disclosed 5K PR goal. 
• Push it at CrossFit. Become even more badass than people seem to think I already am (I think they are just blowing steam up my ...).
• Have so much fun I can hardly stand it. Relish in the run. Feel the joy. 

Life-related goals:

• Love more, hate (or be petty) less.
• Be compassionate. 
• Stop, collaborate and listen.
• Spend more time with family. 
• When in doubt, go for it. 
•  Just be nice. When I'm on my deathbed, I'm never going to think "Oh no! They thought I was nice!"
• Do more work with MOCSA. 
• Floss. I'm so not good about that.

 It's a long list. I suppose really I could have summed it up like:

Have Fun.
Be nice.
Keep at it.
Better dental hygiene.

Hmm. That's much better.