Attack of the low blood sugar

I don't know about you, but when I get hungry, bad things happen. Amanda calls it "the little monster". I can't function, i can't think, I get shaky, and I'm physically incapable of being nice to anyone. If I'm ever pulled over while driving when the little monster is rearing its ugly head, I'll probably get ticketed for being drunk. I'm almost certain I wouldn't be able to pass the "walking in a straight line" test; at least not without throwing myself on the ground and having a temper tantrum first, until the cop throws me a donut (hehehe).

You know those Snickers commercials that say, "You're not yourself when you're hungry"? TOTALLY me!
(This is the best one. Betty White is awesome).


I don't understand people who don't eat breakfast. Whenever someone tells me they haven't eaten yet, and it's nearly lunchtime or later, I want to erupt with meanness. If there's anything I've learned in my 29 years, it's that my mom is (and was) always right. I don't know how she does it, but it's totally true. And did mom not tell us growing up that "breakfast is the most important meal of the day"? That's cuz IT IS! Nothing would get done if I didn't eat breakfast...and my customary 2-3 morning snacks before lunch.

If I had to pick a meal that was my favorite, it would be breakfast hands-down. I literally think the only thing that makes me get out of bed to go to work in the morning is that morning meal. I've read that you should eat within the first thirty minutes of waking up to jump-start your metabolism. I'm no doctor, but it sounds good to me! Dinner is my least favorite meal. I'd rather just have some snacks. Snacks are my second favorite meal. As a whole. Snacks rule.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I LOVE FOOOOOD. And I'm pretty sure that if I didn't eat...a lot...I'd have no friends, my family would have disowned me long ago, I'd be unemployed, and probably living in a cardboard box with no friends, and no dog. Because even a dog can't deal with "the little monster".

The majority of my friends and family act as if this is a strange phenomenon, like no one else in the world has this affliction when their blood sugar is low, which is really obnoxious.

Do you turn into a "little monster" when you're hungry?

...and I don't mean the fun, fluffy ones
created by Disney.

I make awkward look cool

It must be working

Yesterday I decided that my 15k training plan was going to burn me out rather quickly. I knew I had to change it up. It had me running four days in a row each week; six days a week total. I'm such a cross-training junkie with such a short attention span, that for the sake of my sanity I decided to take a couple of different plans, combine them, and add an extra day of cross-training in place of tempo run days. When I get more comfortable with the plan, and using Willy, I'll add in some tempo runs to the other run days. I'm feeling way more confident about this plan.

Yesterday spin class was...weird. The instructor was someone I haven't had yet. She was young. She had us listening to Britney Spears and Taylor Swift. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but spinning is a hardcore workout that deserves much better, more upbeat songs than "Today Was a Fairytale". And also, she mentioned at one point that she is 20 years old. I'm pretty sure everyone in the class wanted to run up and flick her in the forehead.

Random thought: Wanna feel better about yourself or maybe more...normal? Watch Dance Moms. Man, talk about wanting to flick someone in the forehead! These bitches are crazy! All of them! I'm dumbfounded. You just need to check it out.


And now, I'd like to give you a sneak peek at my upcoming etsy-ful weekend.

In the next couple of days I should be receiving the last of the materials I need to make collars. It's becoming real, you guys :)


Are you good at flirting? I'm not. Unless inappropriate, teenage boy pickup lines are hot.


Are there any shows you watch because they reaffirm the fact that you are a good person?

The one where I teeter on the edge of appropriateness

Thanks everyone for the great advice yesterday! I have a lot to think about. Currently I'm in need of a haircut pretty badly, but I can't justify the cost of it when I need new running shoes! So, please excuse any pictures of me in the near future in which it looks like I have a mullet. I did it for running.

Yesterday's workout was interesting, and the interesting part really had nothing to do with the actual workout itself. Let me explain:
I walked into my gym, which is a wee little place. The first thing I notice is that I'm the youngest one in there by probably 20–25 years and the music being piped into the place was some kind of soft rock oldies. How in the world does one work out to that? (Thank you, iPod!) Maybe I missed the memo for "geriatric hour"? As I'm coming up on the end of my first mile on the treadmill, this lady walks in, clearly having never really been in a gym before. She's dressed in some strange, stereotypical "workout outfit" that I'd expect to see in a workout VHS from the 80's and is wearing brand new, red Chuck Taylors. And THEN, out of the six treadmills, all of which are empty except for the one I'm on, she gets on the one right next to me. I hate when people do that.

I've got tons of blisters to give away!

After three miles on the treadmill, I was sweating way more than I should have been after three miles and my heart rate was pretty high. I really wanted to do some strength and stretching and get out of there ASAP. It was at about this point when "hot gym guy" walked in. I did my best to pretend I didn't see him, as I always do, because otherwise I feel all weird and awkward since I have my iPod on the whole time. (I've been approached by creepy guys before when my ears are free).

So I finished my workout and went into the bathroom to wash my hands. As I was coming out of the bathroom, "hot gym guy" walked over to me to say hello and that "it would be really nice if you'd talk to me sometimes because you're the only girl who comes in here and actually works out". Noted! You got it, hot gym guy. Maybe someday I will be able to refer to him by his actual name.

I got home last night to a gigantic package. What could it be? I hadn't ordered anything this large. Amazon, are you messing with me?

They were. Look who finally arrived!

 
After long last, my Willy is here!
(Kudos to Kara and her hubby for naming him. I will get so much pleasure from his name).

My Willy is much larger than my Pinky.

The outside of the Amazon box had a website where you can go to "rate this packaging". I'm thinking of letting them know that they could have used a much smaller box. My Willy is pretty large, but it's not that large.


And then, last night after my shower, Pippi was acting kind of funny. She curled up in bed and fell right asleep. She normally likes to torture me for a while first and make me rub her until she's ready to retreat to her little corner.

This is how she fell asleep. Adorable, right? Well, it turns out she was acting funny because she had an upset stomach, and not long after I took this picture, she threw up on my white duvet cover.

Dogs are awesome.

It's all about the accessories

Ok, you seasoned runners, I need assistance. Somewhere around two to three months ago, I purchased my current running shoes, and they've been good to me. I wanted to possibly order another pair soon, before they stop making/selling them (as happens with just about everything in life that I decide I like. Gatorade, don't even think about discontinuing your lemon-lime G2 or I will chase you down!)

So anywho, here are the little darlings. Saucony Ride 2.

If you clicked on the link, you found that "No inventory is available for the selected product." See what I mean?! I wanted to cry. I cannot find them anywhere. Now, they are making the Saucony Ride 3 and 4. Does this mean that it's essentially the same shoe, but just a newer "style"? Will they fit the same if I go for the upgraded number?  


Any expertise for your favorite wanna-be runner? :)



And now, my current running accessories wish list:

A headlamp (thanks to Kari's suggestion :). I can't decide what color I'd get, though.

A water bottle to carry on long runs (thanks to Kara's suggestion). i mean, hello, it comes in purple!

And another suggestion from Kari, Stuffitts Shoes Savers. I've always shied away from running outside in the rain because I didn't want to ruin my running shoes (they're expensive, you know!) Well, these suckers supposedly dry your shoes out and keep 'em de-stinkified. Unfortunately, again, I'd have to choose only one color. <sigh>

I also want to get a RoadID. I can't decide which one, though. I was thinking one for my shoe, but dude, they make a purple wrist one!

Eventually I'm sure I'll be adding cold-weather running clothing, but financially I just can't think about that yet.

I also found something pretty cool that I'd probably never need, seeing how I most likely will never be running a full marathon, but maybe you'd be interested. The PaceTat; a temporary tattoo with all of your mile split goals printed in large font so that you can read easily while running. Pretty awesome, right?

What running accessory can you not live without?

Do you have another accessory that I should add to my list?

Today is day 2 of "training". Day one was pretty much an epic fail, but I have high hopes for my four miles today. Cross your fingers!

Tum ta tum tum TUUMMM

This post was supposed to be about how I did my first training run this morning and that it was great and I'm looking forward to making it a 4-mile run tomorrow morning. But as soon as I lay down in bed last night, i knew it was going to be a long night. My stomach was feeling very un-awesome. I immediately started munching on TUMS, but to no avail.

After tossing around for a while, around midnight I decided the run was going to have to wait until this afternoon, and switched off my alarm. I'm pretty mad at my "system", as I was actually looking forward to getting out and running early. Even now, sitting at work, I'm pretty out-of-it and there's a dull-ish pain in my gut. I'm not really sure what's going on but it needs to find its way out of me, dagnabit!

In other news, my Garmin didn't come this weekend like I was hoping. The USPS is officially on my list. It departed Charlotte at 1am on Saturday morning. How freaking long does it take? The "delivery estimate" isn't until tomorrow. I demand a recount.

And now, I'm just going to share a few pictures because my brain hasn't turned on yet today.

Coming soon to etsy!

A while ago, Alyssa and I were discussing the ridiculous serving sizes of things. Well, I found a serving size package of chocolate chips at Costco. Finally!

She looked so uncomfortable I had to take a picture.

Yes, I'm comfortable. Now let me rest so that I can torture you later.

 This is how you weigh a dog at home.

She's gained 3 pounds.

Officially on my Amazon wishlist.

Is this not the most awesome Nylabone you've ever seen!?

Seven links

Thursday night I was messing around before I hopped in the shower after my workout, and I was able to get an earring in one of my cartilage piercings that I thought had closed up long ago. Yesterday my ear was a work of art :)

And now, since I've been tagged in the "7 links" blogging extravaganza, and because I crack under peer pressure (and we all know I'm always up for a challenge), Here are my seven:

1.  Most Beautiful
I'd say probably my post the day after I adopted Pippi. I couldn't even guess how long I'd been wanting a dog, and I was so happy when I was able to take her home the day I met her. It was just meant to be :)

2.  Most Popular
I'm not sure why, but my post-vacation post earlier this month is my most popular. I'm thinking it's because it has the word "grind" in the title, and features a capybara in a collar. I mean it just doesn't get any better than that.

Where's my collar, Mama?

3.  Most Controversial
I don't like drama (unless I'm watching it on the boob tube), so I don't normally post about controversial topics, but I'd say probably either my Jillian Michaels rant or that one about Guiliana are probably the most "controversial" of my posts.

Fat is evil. That's why I don't drink coffee
or eat full meals.

4. Most Helpful
Uhh...maybe...one of my reviews? I'm not exactly a professional anything that would be helpful to the world, that I know of. I like to pretend sometimes that I know what I'm doing, but let's get real. I hardly ever have more than a slight idea of what's taking place in the world around me at any given moment.

5.  Surprise Success
The fact that I have any followers at all is amazing to me. I was unsuccessful at getting my family to read this here blog, which was the original intended purpose, but you all keep me going.

6. Not Enough Attention
Hmmm...That anyone pays any attention at all is pretty spectacular. Maybe my motivations page? But I'm probably biased because I love that page. We all need a little motivation now and then.

7.  Most Proud
Way back when I switched over to Blogger, my brother, Jeremy, was rebuilding an engine for an older Jeep that he had bought. He worked on it for a while, and when he finally got it going, I think he may have shed a tear :) I was proud.


And now I'm supposed to tag people, but I'm sure everyone I'd tag has already been tagged (and has possibly already done their "7 links" post....helloooo 15 followers :), so no homework for now. But you may not get off so easy next time.

And now, time for me to get up the *umph* to clean the entire house. It wouldn't be such a daunting task if it weren't for my two furry shadows. (Garmin update: He (it has been decided that he's a dude) left Charlotte, NC at 1:30am last night. I hope that means he gets here today!)


Happy Weekend!

Verdict: GU is....guey

First off, I'd like to let you all know that the latest shipping news on my Garmin is that it departed from Hebron, KY last night at 9:30pm. I sure wish Kentucky wasn't so far away (about 9 hours, driving. I just looked it up). Also, I need name suggestions for it (and also, is it a male or female? And no, I refuse to name it Rage).

I may be red, but I'm not angry.

Yesterday I tried GU for the first time. I was planning to have a great run (which didn't happen), but I'm pretty sure the Espresso Love GU wasn't to blame.

Kara's advice to me about consuming the GU:

Squeeze some in your mouth and try to swallow in one clump (like a pill). Don't slosh it around your mouth like a fine wine. Wash it down with a ton of water and you'll be good.

Here's how it went down:

I was scared.

 

...but I had chasers!

Here goes nothin!

This is a whole lot more than a "shot"!
Do I have to swallow it?
(Heh...that's what she said?)

The verdict.

Ok, so it wasn't that bad, but it wasn't awesome. Still, I'll give it another chance. I've got four more flavors to be tortured with try. I'm really curious about the "sports beans". I may have to give them a try as well. There's just something about the amount of stuff in each GU packet that seems daunting to me.

I kept burping up the flavor of it, but really I didn't mind so much because it didn't taste awful.

When I got home from the gym, "dinner" was

A plate full of amazingness

It's all I wanted to eat and when I was done eating it, I wasn't hungry anymore...until I went to bed last night and then I was starving. Coincidentally, I didn't sleep great last night. Sometimes my brain lets me down like that.

And now, a confession. My motivation for getting to the gym today (instead of doing an at-home workout) is that last Friday "hot guy" waved at me and I'm hoping for a reenactment. And also, he's hot and we all need something nice to look at while torturing ourselves, right?

So, Let me know what you think about names for The Garmin and what you'd imagine its gender to be.
It's a very important decision!

The plan

  

On Monday I will *officially* be "training". Wee! I've found a 15k training plan online that seems pretty good. It's ten weeks long and there are 19 weeks until the big 15k, so I've decided I'll do each of the weeks twice, and the last week once. My only thing about this plan is that it has me doing a rest day the day after Thanksgiving. Yeah, we'll be switching that up for sure.

Here's the tentative plan

Can someone explain to me, in simple terms, how you do tempo runs and # x 800 runs? I'm not comprehending it for some reason. (To bring you up to speed, a couple of months ago I had to look up the definition of "PR". Yeah, I'm that far behind).

Today, i will be trying GU for the first time! I'm seriously hoping it isn't the consistency of what I'd imagine an oyster feels like going down. For some reason I imagine that it's going to be slimy and make me want to hurl. I hope not.

Supposedly Espresso Love is the best flavor. We'll see!

This made me laugh. I had to share.

I realized that I never updated everyone on my "dizzies" situation. My MRI was normal (whatever that really means), so I had a follow-up appointment with my doctor on Tuesday. At first, she was going to pass me off to an ENT (which I took to mean she was giving up, which I did not want to hear). I brought up the fact that my mom has Mitral Valve Prolapse, which is a genetic condition, and wondered if by any chance that could be the cause. She checked my heart again and didn't hear a murmur, so she ruled that out...for now. She then checked my ears and there is plenty of fluid in there still (I could have told her that!) So she did that thing where she holds up a finger and says, "follow my finger with your eyes" so I did and on the right side, I got dizzy right away (it's my right ear that's been bothering me). When she did it on my left side, it was ok. Hmmmm..so, I'm currently on Prednisone until Sunday. It's supposed to take care of the fluid. If it doesn't, then she'll refer me to an ENT. Yes, I want to scream right now. Yes, I'm pissed off. Yes, I'm still having problems and if they're not gone before my 5k, someone might die.

Also, the doctor told me that my appetite may increase on Prednisone. You know, because I don't already have the appetite of an elephant.

Now onto the fun things: dog pictures!

Some of the positions she lays in crack me up. The fact that her
butt is on my pillow does NOT crack me up.

A-She's sitting like a person.
B-She's sitting backwards on the couch.
C-She's actually watching Amanda in the kitchen, which is
good because I don't know if I can afford doggie exorcism.

..and the insanity continues.