All posts by Lauren @ mostly i run

About Lauren @ mostly i run

Wife. Web Developer. Kitty Momma. Runner. Singer. Triathlete. Shoe Collector. Blogger. View all posts by Lauren @ mostly i run →

sixteen miles in the snow

February 3, 2007Uncategorizedrunning amuckLauren @ mostly i run

For our marathon training, we ran 16 miles today. While that is not farther than I’ve gone before (I’ve run two metric marathons, 26.2K/16.3 miles), today still marked a couple of milestones.

1) I have never run in the snow before.

We ran on the NCR Trail (from Ashland to a little over a mile past Monkton and back), which recently received a 1/2-inch dusting of snow. Fortunately, since temperatures have been below freezing, it was not icy or slippery. Despite the footprints from runners, walkers, bikers and deer, it was still soft and powdery. It is a different surface to run on, though!

2) It is the farthest I have run without being in excruciating pain.

I began to hurt around mile 12 during both metric marathons, and by the end I was very sore.

Today my knee did start to hurt again, but it waited until 15.5 and I just walked the last half mile. I expected it, though. When we ran 14, I had to stop running at 13.5. I’m just happy my body is keeping up with our training schedule!

We’re all kicking ourselves that nobody brought a camera. The trail was beautiful — a river runs alongside it. In a few places, rocks jutting out from the hills were covered with waterfalls of icicles. They were starting to melt in the sun, causing them to sparkle more.

Even though it’s an hour drive to get to the beginning of the trail, it was well worth it. We’ll definitely run there again!

lunchtime conversation

February 2, 2007UncategorizedLauren @ mostly i run

My team at work went out for a belated holiday lunch at a seafood place today.

It’s a small team at the moment, just me, another co-worker, and our boss. My boss is only a few years older than me, and we were peers before he was my manager, so we’re friends too.

“What do you think this is?” my boss said, picking up the third shaker next to the salt and pepper, containing a brown substance.

“Probably Old Bay,” I reply. He starts liberally applying over his crab cake and baked potato. “Or cinnamon.”

He puts down the shaker. We all burst out laughing.

i am a contradiction

February 1, 2007UncategorizedmeLauren @ mostly i run

Or maybe a conundrum. Or a hodgepodge. (My husband gets credit for reminding me of this commercial, of course, now he has also compared me to a platypus.)

It crossed my mind last night, as I was getting ready for bed, that my hair falls somewhere between wavy and curly.

It has too much curl to be wavy, but the weight of my hair tends to straighten the curls somewhat, so that it’s not really curly either. It just gets frizzy/fluffy if I don’t use the right products!

And then there’s the color. A friend once described me as a “rotten strawberry blond.” That’s probably the best way to put it! I’m too dark to be strawberry blond, not red enough to be a redhead. I’d like it to be redder, but I won’t dye it*. I love that it’s natural.

So we’ve got sort of curly reddish-blondish-brownish hair.

Adding to the mix, I am also a tall petite. At 5’3″, I’m still pretty short. The “petite” category is supposed to be for people 5’4″ and under so I should be fine. However, I have a terrible time finding pants with the right length.

Most of the time, petite pants are too short. They are usually the perfect length, if I were to go barefoot. That rules out even the smallest heel most of the time. Non-petite pants tend to be longer than my highest heels.

I’m not a good enough sewer to hem nice pants (I’ll only hem pajamas or running pants!), and I’m not going to have all of my clothes tailored, so I’ll just keep trying on dozens of pants, waiting for the ones that have a slightly longer (or shorter) inseam!

So, I’m kind of short, with sort of curly reddish-blondish-brownish hair. And blueish-greenish-grayish eyes.

No complaints there. They change color to match my outfits!

*Not that my hair has never been dyed … in college, it was deeper red, dark brown, reddish-pink, and purple. It’s all mine now — no dye has touched my head since 1996!

a toaster oven made my day

January 31, 2007UncategorizedLauren @ mostly i run

I went into the office kitchen at lunchtime today to heat up my Lean Cuisine, and was ecstatic to find a shiny new toaster oven sitting next to the microwave.

My boss remarked that he couldn’t remember the last time he saw me so happy. And I’ll even admit that it’s true.

Really. A toaster oven.

Because now I can make Pop Tarts for breakfast again!

I’ve been suffering from withdrawal even since we moved into this office (which was the week before Christmas, but I wasn’t really working here until January 2).

I’ve been looking longingly at my unopened box of low-fat brown sugar cinnamon Pop Tarts each morning as I open my drawer and grab oatmeal or a cereal bar instead.

Yeah, it’s pretty sad that this has been the highlight of my week.

But I can’t wait until breakfast tomorrow!

delusions of grandeur

January 30, 2007UncategorizedLauren @ mostly i run

noun
a delusion (common in paranoia) that you are much greater and more powerful and influential than you really are
— definition from dictionary.com

I’ve been watching the “American Idol” audition shows for the past few weeks. Season six, and it still amazes me.

How can so many people go out for these auditions thinking they have the talent to win, when they are completely tone deaf? Or sound like screeching cats? Or sing monotonously without any emotion?

Sure, I know only the best of the best (and worst of the worst) actually make it on TV. And, it’s mostly the truly awful ones that make the cut. It’s usually obvious when people know they’re bad, but just want to get on TV. They’re the ones with goofy costumes and gimmicks.

But the ones leaving in tears? They really thought they had a chance. (Could they act that well when they sing so poorly?)

I feel bad for them.

As a singer, I know my limitations. Even if I wasn’t too old for the show, I would never have tried out.

For starters, I’m terrible in auditions. I’m always far too nervous that only a fraction of my usual voice will come out. Karaoke terrifies me — I dragged myself to do it only once, after a few drinks!

I’ve never been a soloist. I’ve been singing in choirs since I was young, but I have no confidence when I’m out there on my own. Someday I’d like to take some lessons so I can become a more confident, competent singer.

Not so I can be a superstar, just for me.

Besides, I doubt they’d raise the maximum audition age again!