add one more to the gimp list

or was that the Pimp list ;) teehee

not a big deal, just a bit of a pull or a hyperextension of the hip flexor area. all the same i'm playing it safe and not running for a few days to a week. foward, that is. backwards is just dandy! lol. It took like 15 minutes to go a mile, but at least it's cardio! and it's not the pool!
Dammit though, I'm determined to make it through 1 pre-season without being injured! lol.

oh, Matt Conyers is going to be our trainer again :) yay. i do like matt. he's a good guy. shy, but once you get to know him, he opens up. plus we have twin trucks. hahah sorta. maybe more like distant cousins, twice removed or something. okay, they're not even close. but he does drive a pickup!

-j

The best and only two weddings of my life! lol

So the weekend before last I was in my cousins bridal party for her wedding up in Chico California. (There is nothing there except the brewery she got married in, lol) Anyway, I had the best time ever, I went for a run in the morning and wished that I could run all day because I didn't realize just how close the foothills were, oh well. Then we got our hair and make up done (yes, not really my style, but it turned out good I thought). Then we took a million pictures with my cousin and her fiance and all the bridal party. The wedding took place not too long afterwards and it was amazing!! My whole family was out on the dance floor and we had the best time! Then the bridal party took off to a bar after we got kicked out of the brewery and I had one of the best nights! It was amazing!!

Then, this last weekend I went up to Chicago for my friends wedding. I got to stay at his really neat house out in the farm lands about 40 mintues from downtown Chicago. It was really neat and I went running next to the soy bean fields and corn fields lol. People kept making jokes about me eating the soy beans, (i'm alergic to soy, lol). Anyway, the ceremony was fantastic and the reception was amazing, they held it under this big tent with light right in their yard next to the soy bean fields and barns and their 1918 house. I loved it!! I ended up dancing until 4 in teh morning when I had to leave to go and catch a flight. It was amazing! I got to spend time with my friends that I haven't gotten to see in such a long time.

Running last week didn't go as well as I would have liked, however, my run today was fantastic! I'm so excited!! Cross country is so close I just can't wait!!
Happy trails everyone! Be safe!!

Lori

nightmare

haha so my rediculously horrible last week just got worse. it's actually kind of funny at this point.
my really nice ipod, adidas track jacket, cell phone, and house key all got stolen at the race this morning.
fun! and honestly this one wasn't a classic case of me losing my stuff, it was more along the lines of homeless people stealing things.

so i went to cancel my phone, and my dad didn't put my name on my account, which means i can't do anything until i get ahold of him. sadly he's in the boonies with no reception, so i'll be phoneless for a while :(

luckily i can afford a new ipod now, but i can't bring myself to get a nice one anymore, which is sad since my last one was amazing.

oh. i went 20:30 in the race. it sounds slow, but considering the course and the trainers i ran in, i can't complain too much. it's also the 4th time i've hit my PR exactly :(

-j

::edit::
i decided to be spontaneous, so i bought a new Ipod off ebay. i feel like i should punnish myself for being irresponsible and letting the last one get stolen, but i feel like it is a good time to buy these sort of things now that the iphone just came out and people will be selling their old ipods. i bought a 30g video one with some accessories for $150, which is about the going rate of a new 8g nano, so i feel okay about it. i thought abuot just getting an iphone for $200, but it's too big for running.

of course...

So...in my previous post I was talking about my knee hurting. Well I decided to go out for a light jog the other day and I oculdnt make it around the corner without it hurting!! I started freaking out so the next day I went to the doctor...he first said it was a meniscial tear, meaning surgery and therapy for 4-6 weeks. BUT after X-rays and MRI's they came to the conclusion I had Iliotibial Band Syndrome. The outer band running from the bone in my knee up my is inflammed. They gave me a shot of cortisone and I am on medicine to help that I have to take 2 times a day. But the doctor said I will be able to start running again in 6 days. Ugh...so I was out of really training 2 weeks before seeing the doctor and now another 6 days!!! But i should be able to run at camp. He said I have to start slow just so I dont reinjure it. So this will be fun :)

Hope all is going well with everyone!!
See you all soon
~Baleigh

bethie poo

talked to beth today. she went on an impromptu 14 miler this weekend, which is her longest run of the summer, but she was silly and did it in the middle of the day so it was miserable. she's been running on hilly trails in hopes that it will help her prepare for xc courses. she has been training hard, but it feels like a different "in shape" than other summers. maybe that's becuase it didn't really start till july. she's been helping some of her new friends get into shape too, which is cool. she is sad that this is her last week of work, but happy that she bought a new bible with cheater tabs to say where all the different books start. hahah i'm just giving her a hard time about it. she sent me a letter last week that cracked me up, so i have to share. it began like this:

To the roomate of my life,
o roommate, o roommate, what thou should do with no room. b/c you know , room and mate go together...

hehe. <3 i love my roomie.

masses of glasses

so, it doesn't look like i'm going to have new frames by the time i get back. which is a bummer cause i look rediculous with only 1 ear thing. but it's not my fault that my glasses company is retarded and they don't have any offices in hawaii, and they won't mail them to me at home. i've been to 5 places here looking for a new frame, but of course it's a rich tourist city so all they have is stuff like prada and versace. which aren't my style in the first place, but even if they were, they're about five hundred dollars too expensive.
i wonder if i could weld my old ones back together with the equipment in the civ lab... haha that could be fun!

-j

scary!

i had one of the most nervous days ever at work today...i gave my final presentation to the lead observatory commissioning engineer...basically, he's the guy that decides if i should be invited to come back next year or not. so let's keep our fingers crossed that i sounded impressive enough to merit another summer with them. the only bummer, is that my boss was not present for it, so i have to do it all over again!

therapy is going well. i never realized how bad my hips really were, but they've been giving me all sorts of strength exercises to do and what not, and i've been sore, so i have a pretty good feeling that it is having an effect on me.

and i don't kno if i mentioned this yet...but i get to see the titan rocket on the launchpad at VAFB next week, so i'm pretty excited.

hasta luego,

salinas

well, i just went through the hardest day of my life thus far. but i learned a lot, and i think it's made me a better person, so i'm glad it happened.
then i almost got injured today, but it turned out okay after some stretching. some wierd side hip flexor thing that started hurting on the way home from work. but i was able to do a speed workout, so it must not be too bad.

in other news, i have a race on sunday that i'm pretty excited about. but of course since i want to go fast, i'm pretty sure i'm going to be girly. which totally blows. hah. i'm 3 for 3 now if you include nationals. seriously, i couldn't have planned it better. or worse, depending on how you look at it. i'm gonna go with better.. glass half full sort of thing.
i do have 2 friends running with me, so if by some miracle i can run, i'm thinking they'll be able to drag me under 20. or at least 20:30.

man. that was fairly depressing. there must be something good to share... hmm... well, it's 2 weeks till pre-season! i'm also going to get rid of my lepracy soon. oh! i'm getting new glasses as well, since mine are currently broken. i think the best news of all though is that the dinner buzzer is going off, which means food! yay!

love, me

This is why I would sck at keeping my own blog..

Haha ok...So I'm quite horrible at keeping journals as you can tell..but here's what seems like my annual entry...

Yesterday I went for a REEEALLY long run...I mean really!! It was kind of due to the fact that I won't admit to being lost...ever...so I just say that I went exploring. I decided to make up a new route, and about 4 miles into it took a road that I recognized but forgot where it came out to...so I just kept following it and it never seemed to end! But there's just something inside me that won't let me turn around because I'm just too curious to see where it leads. So anyway...My long run ended up being 22 miles and I stopped at 4 Dunkin' Donuts (might just be a New England thing) for water and ran past like 6 others...it's kinda ridiculous how many there are around here...in my city alone there are 7 Dunks'...and my city isn't that big....
But anyway ya...I don't plan on running that far again anytime TOO soon...but i do want to run the marathon! And it wasn't that bad considering it was a brand new route...I get bored if I run the same route too many times.

But hmm let's see...Oh! I don't think I described my camping trip and hike to Mt. Washington yet! I went with some track buddies and it was SO MUCH FUN and i saw the BIGGEST MOTH EVER!! Really...it was kinda scary...the wingspan was like 7"!! We walked down to the ranger station late at night to pick up firewood and there was a light on and sooooooo many moths...and on the wall there was this one that we thought couldn't be real...and then someone dared a friend to touch it and then it started flying and it was sooo funny because we acted like it was a monster and ran away from it. And the hike was awesome too...of course going with other track people we practically ran up the mountain, but it was nice...and there was still snow in some places so we went sledding in our windpants in july!!
I love camping :)

OH!! and tonight I'm going to see Batman at the IMAX theater!! Woo!!

~Kaz

i ran through a bamboo forest today :)

oh, and yesterday i bought a purse! it's a girl one haha. leather, and it cost more than the rest of my purchases combined. okay so it was only $25 at ross. but that's over $50 anywhere else. which, for me. for a purse. worth mentioning, i think.

-jen

life of a runner...

So after reading everyones posts we are all pretty much doing the same things. Working, running, working out. yep....ive come to realize i have more spare time during the school year, not the summer like most people. I have had previous injuries with my paraneal tendons. My junior year in high school it was my left one and my first year of community college is was my left. i went to physical therapy and though it was painful it really helped. My tendons are stronger than ever so i went into the summer ready to kick some butt training wise. well bam! so my knee. well it was twisted about a year ago and idk if that has anything to do with the pain i am having but yep...it hurts. so i have been taking it easy, not running as far but still keeping it in motion. im doing the stationary bike which helps so im getting back up there again, hopefully i will be able to keep up at camp. well we all have our little injuries and let me tell ya they are not fun.
i went running the other day with my old high school girls and they said i looked skinny...ugh! lol but they said it was more toned....so im guess all those core workouts are really starting to show. haha, maybe.
im too excited to go to camp. will coach send us a list of things we will need or is it just whatever? i cleaned out my closet yesterday and wow...i had alot of stuff. but im just waiting to know where im living before i go shopping. im slowing beginning to pack but i dont really know what ill need. anyways....hope you are all loving summer and excited about school. i know i sure am, nervous but ready to get away from small town drama! see you all soon
-baleigh :)

oh the pain!

so i have been off the radar for a bit...pretty much just working and going to the gym...rinse and repeat...i started physical therapy for my gluteus tendonitis (my mother still laughs at me every time i say it), and it was the most painful experience of my life! the therapist found that my problems arise from the fact that my hips are ridiculously tight/inflexible; so he did this stretch where he puts a strap around my leg, and then it goes around his back and as he leans it totally feels like he is pulling my leg out of the socket (like fire going through my hip). despite nearly crying it did feel better afterward, so i can't complain too much.

sadly there has been little excitement in my life...i've been prepping this major presentation for the Architecture Working Group Meeting coming up in August. Basically it is my job to put together a summary of the changes and progress of the satellite post-launch timeline and present it to one of the working groups. kinda scary since it's a "real" presentation that will be put in the project archives. and in another two weeks i get to visit Vandenberg AirForce Base and checkout all the launchpads...so i'm pretty excited about that.

i hope everyone else is doing fine and dandy.

hasta luego

-salinas

life! (and the kangaroo song)

i'm going to see batman tonight!!! hahah we're getting dressed up and going to dinner first, so it should be a good time.

last night we had dinner with the co-workers in china town at a cool resteraunt where they ordered tons of food i didn't like. haha but i did end up finding something yummy, so that was cool. Afterwards we went to this jazz bar called the dragon upstairs i think. it was awesome. there was live music, and it was amazingly rediculous. the main 2 musicians were a woman on the congas and vocals and this funny old french guy on the: piano, trumpet, and bass. all at the same time... it was incredible. and then they just started calling up people from the room to join them. i guess they do this often because the people they called up were fantastic. and then this random guy in the crowd started playing the harmonica out of nowhere, and they just jammed for like 20 minutes of improv. it was incredible. i don't even like that type of music, but as a musician i was seriously impressed.

i did decide to go on the long run tomorrow. though i will say my feet have been acting up lately, so i'm kind of nervous (and it had nothing to do with the heels i wore yesterday.. not at all). ive seen too many good runners get sidelined with plantars to take it lightly. not that i have plantars... but whatever i have aggrevates it, and i'm terrified it's actually going to become a problem one day. so i took today off, and i plan on doing lots of calf massaging.

this week was pretty low key training except for tuesday. the group was going 2 minutes round temp0-5k race pace, 1 minute easy, and it sounded like fun, so i joined them for an excellent workout. i wish we did that more back home. it was jovial. hahah

i am going absolutely crazy for pre-season to start... it is completely and utterly rediculous. i've never been this excited before... i dont' know what's gotten into me, but i am thoroughly and hopelessly stoked.
haha i decided it's partially becuase i have no boy to obsess over this year, so you chicas are my re-kindled love! teehee
though i'm not gonna lie, i can't wait to see nick and russell too! (among others)
lol. i just watched "the plunge" videos from nationals... and i died laughing. again.

-jen

catching up

Alright what has happened since I last posted?
I ran a couples run at the local airport... 2.5 mile race where you add your times together and yeah you get the picture. My boyfriend and I got third overall so that was cool. Only thing was I went out WAY too fast, especially because 2.5 miles seems so short!
I've taken my motor boat out a few times, got EXTREMELY sunburned and got stranded at 8:30 at night while panicking of course, but made it out alive haha. I got my hair cut about 7 or 8 inches off today, shortest I have had since I was about 8.
Today I found out one of my best friend's grandmother died so I will be at the wake tomorrow AND there was a boat accident in our local harbour. My two old sailing coaches were on the boat that was hit by a 52 ft powerboat, it split into two and one died, the other in the hospital. Just so happens that the coach who lived is the grandfather of one of the girls I babysit so I hung out with her pretty late today until they came home to tell her what happened, scary.
I'm getting really nervous about camp, well more so this time trial, but really excited. I've been organizing my closets and stuff ready to pack :). Oh, we have a meet at Disney?!

Kira

Pre-camp

Sooo, who wants to let me live with them before we leave for camp and before I can move into Apollo? :)

<3Erika

need opinions! yikes!

so i made some friends that i've been running with out here, which is great becuase they're all mid 19's runners, just my speed! (i hope!) haha
anyways, they invited me to go on this 12 mile long run which involves 5 miles straight up, not including the rolling hills on the way to the climb in the first place. it'll be at an easy pace, but the terrain will make it pretty rough, even for the veterans... now, my longest run this summer was this weekend, when i went 82 minutes for about 10 miles, 5 of which were uphill, but broken up into segments, so it was easy. This run should be about 20 minutes longer, which is kind of a lot, but i really want to do it because i think it would be a great challenge, and somethign i can look back and say "if i did this, i can do anything". but i'm pretty fragile, so there's a chance it could be too much of a jump for me... what do you think? i usually don't add more than 10% at a time, but this would be adding 25%, so i'm a bit wary of throwing the rulebook out the window.
i know i can do it, and i'd love to go... it's just a matter of... is this a good idea? haha maybe i'll call coach and make him feel important ;) in the meantime, opinions are greatly appreciated

-jen

Running/Walking/Yelling

I went for a run in the hills today. They are situated just below the large mountain by my house and have some wonderful single track trails. Taking off at a lovely pace (which quickly turned into a relatively fast pace, lol) I climbed up to the top of this ridge and looked out over the valley, it was beautiful. My mom's dog came with me and once we reached the top of the ridge I had chosen to climb I decided to head back and find my mother for the rest of the run, mind you this is at 22:10. So, turning back we made it to 23:30 when I realize the dog isn't right behind me anymore. She walked for a few feet and then plopped down in the shade, panting and completely exhausted. (So, much for my run) We had to walk the rest of the way back, which ended up taking forever, and at one point I was certain I would have to carry her. So that was interesting. I ended up getting yelled at by my mother for trying to kill her Dog (Oz, anyone? anyone? Great book, everyone should read it). I promptly said that it was not my fault the dog was out of shape. Anyway, my run was really good for the first part, not so great after that, lol. I can't wait until we head out tomorrow for a run in the morning and a bike ride in the afternoon (YEAH!) I'm excited.

Yesterday we rode up the mountain and I pretended I was riding next to Cadel Evans, if you know who I'm talking about then YEAH, if not oh well.

Anyway, I'm suppose to get ready for some family function... joy. Have a great day!! Happy trails!

Lori

asdflkj

I got a care package from evil lady in the mail today...
haha it was, if nothing else, humorous to say the least
no joke, this is what was in my box:
2 cases of decorative ribbon (which are lovely, but what in the world am i going to do with them in hawaii??), annies macaroni in individual packets (i love annies, but really? why?), a richard gere war movie from 1982, Teen Vogue and Cosmo Girl magazines (which prompted a "she has met you, right?" from my uncle), cheese and peanut butter crackers (it's pretty common knowledge i don't eat peanut butter), a bag of discusting popcorn, a can of soup (does she think they're not feeding me? or was she emptying her pantry?), and i'll give her credit, she did get me milano cookies and a plain tee from target that i like.
ahh the joys of mail!

on tuesday i did 1,000m repeats with the hawaii state high shcool girls xc champion. which is funny i guess becuase i can now say i've kept up with both the guys and girls champion (some of you remember Mac...) haha!

ahhhhh! i hate being a girl!! alex!! i want just to sit in my room cryyyyyy!! and i know you understand!! :(
boo! so emotional!
hah. well at least we can laugh at ourselves and how rediculous we get sometimes...

oh. ignore the password email you've probably been getting from this site... beth and i are trying to figure out why she can't access her account... she's been reading, she jsut can't write :(
she's doing well by the way... last week she did a 12 mile run in 1:37 i think.. something rediculous anyway... where she'd have to do like an 8 minute mile for the last bit to hit A standard for the half marathon. she likes her new house much better than her last one, and she doens't feel like harry potter living under the stairs anymore. she's currently working on a plan to save the word using satellites, but it's slow going. she had a really good idea a while ago, it was just 10 years or so too late... it was a nice thought though... lol she called me this morning while she was doing a long run on the trails.. i asked her why she had her phone on a run and she said "well in case i roll an ankle or get eaten by a wild animal"

on that note....

-j

p.s. i recommend DLing Jason Mraz's I'm yours from his We Sing.We dance. We steal things. album

NorCAL!!

So, I was supposed to come home on wednesday but I found out that I have been transfered to another project and the one I have been working on has been put on hold. The new project requires that I just read all week so I said screw it, I'm going home, lol. Anyway, I'm home right now. When I first arrived on saturday the sky was so smoky but about an hour later it cleared up very nicely I went running at 3 because I could lol. The hills are great, I flew through them yesterday and today I'm taking my moms bike up the mountain, I'm really excited.

My baby brother is HUGE!! I can't get over it, he's not a baby anymore, but a child, it's so wierd. The kid is extremely smart, my older brother used the handle on the door to go outside and my baby brother tried to copy him. He pays attention to everything, so if you move something he knows where it is and goes after it. The kid will be walking soon, its crazy and he's always smiling and watching. So smart.

Oh my, it seems we are heading out soon for the bike ride. Take care everyone, be careful and make sure to stretch, lol. Can't wait to see everyone!!

Lori

If you could have any super power, what would it be? I would love to fly!! Though anything that would help me save the world would be very nice.

s/n, and do you use it? no, not really, I used to, maybe I will again.

favorite disney princess? I think it would have to be Mulan, she saves everyone and that was kind of refreshing to see a girl, oh wait, she isn't a princess is she? Oh, well I like her best.

If you could live anywhere....? I would live in Stans Switzerland (oh wait, I plan on living there, lol) I would also like to live in Japan.

favorite class in school? My favorite class so far has to have been Jets and Rockets. I loved that class and Dr. Swami is amazing.

what kind of car do you drive? An 05 Equinox, it doesn't have a name but that doesn't mean that I don't talk to it.

describe your favorite racing underwears!

what do you think about when you race? if its a good race or a short race, then I don't think about anything, if its a longer race then I try and remind myself that I am racing, lol.

do you text much? Quite a bit, depends though, sometimes I get annoyed and just call people, but I do text quite often.

describe your prom experience

which side of the brain do you use the most? creative right brain (geometry) or logic/order left brain (algebra)lol. I guess I'm one of those annomylies and use both, I love working with numbers and using logic to solve everything, however, I do love to write. I have a very large imagination which I'm sure you will figure out soon enough if you haven't already.

Well, I guess that's me

Lori

gotta love the survey =)

If you could have any super power, what would it be? Being able to fly : )

s/n, and do you use it? AIM - bayleg4.....dont really use it. im not really on the computer much, just to check my myspace or do my homework...and when i do my homework if i have it on i get distracted.

favorite disney princess? Arielle....i sing along evertime!

If you could live anywhere....? I love Florida, couldn't imagine myself living anywhere else. I want to live in a small town where everyone knows everyonek. On a street covered with trees, wherever that is.

favorite class in school? Latin...it was definitely something different, but I had an amazing teacher and I learned sooo much.

what kind of car do you drive? Mazda 626...his name is Snuffalufagus ( i name everything btw )

describe your favorite racing underwears! i love bright colors too, i think i have ever color except for orange. i got yellow last weekend!

what do you think about when you race? Well i think about the girl in front of me and how im going to pass her, lol...and i usually sing a song in my head while im running. I listen to my Mp3 player before I run to get in the zone. But really i dont think that much, i just run my ass off.

do you text much? i am addicted to texting, i used over 6,000 last month...and im not kidding. my girlfriend lives in cape canaveral so its our way to keep in touch. unlimited text and picture messages are a wonderful thing. when i heard we dont have cell phone reception in SC i just laughed.

describe your prom experience.- well junior year was fun went with a big group of friends, senior year had a date, he made it fun on the dance floor =) but our school is dumb we cant really dance the way we want to. teachers walk around with flashlights and sometimes turn the lights on...its annoying.

which side of the brain do you use the most? i more of a right sided girl myself. always use alot of creativity.

..............................SO an update~
well my mom swung open the door at 3:30 in the morning and said they had found my sisters car. yep, it was in a police car chase...haha ironic isnt it. but the front right tire was messed up b/c the driver jumped over a wall and broke the axle. fun fun! so was again the car is in the shop and under criminal investigation. the people somehow got away from the cops, how? i have NO IDEA!! so now im kinda paranoid, kinda feel like im always being watched ya know. so running by myself is kinda scary, i just blast my music and go :)

Survey :)

If you could have any super power, what would it be? - Breathing underwater!!

s/n, and do you use it? AIM - halfeatencheerio, i'm always on but almost always away, and when I am on I usually leave the away message up anyways talking to only a few people haha

favorite disney princess? Mulan. definitely

If you could live anywhere....? Don't worry I hate MA and New England weather, haha I like warm even though I burn so something like California or a European country only because I love Europe

favorite class in school? Physics, by far. Then most math classes or math based sciences like Chem and such. I despise english and history

what kind of car do you drive? A honda civic coupe or subaru outback. I don't technically have a car but my mom does home daycare so I get the car all day to myself and then my dad's on weekends.

describe your favorite racing underwears! haha who thought of this question? anything brightly coloured, I hate boring colours for sports bras or undies and refuse to wear them.

what do you think about when you race? Hmm. how much I love the feeling of running, and that if its not fun it doesn't matter. Sounds really corny but if I get bored or annoyed with it I suck that day.

do you text much? a lot, unfortunately. It's easy I think to stay in touch with some people via text, even cousins in England. Though phone calls are still more personal. My boyfriend isn't a huge fan of just babbling on the phone so we text here and there throughout the day. Even my parents text me!

describe your prom experience. the first year I went to my junior and friend's senior. Junior was fun, nothing amazing. Senior was good until my friend got in a massive fight with another really close friend and you can imagine it sucked. This year I went to junior (boyfriend was a junior this year) and it was so much more fun than last year. My senior prom was drama filled trying to figure out the limo and everything but Amazing. Only thing was one of the "party buses" got busted and two superstars of the school were arrested and 42 kids sent home drunk.

which side of the brain do you use the most? creative right brain (geometry) or logic/order left brain (algebra)
I hate geometry so I am definitely a left brainer

Being 19 is nothing different than 18 yet haha. I skipped the workout on my birthday, not on purpose but only because I got surprised. But since then running has been really good. I have the worst sunburn on the back on my thighs and in like blotches all over the rest of me haha. It looks awful and like it's a rash not a burn. oy vey.

Kira

the long anticipated... survey #4!

If you could have any super power, what would it be? I think i'd like to hear other people's thoughts. Either that or fly.

s/n, and do you use it? AIM - zoomzoomlegacy, i'm always online, though i am only there maybe 1/3 of the time. but probably more than most :)

favorite disney princess? Giselle! haha but if we're talking classic (disney defines them as Ariel, Mulan, Cinderella, Snow white, Jasmine, sleeping beauty, belle, and pocahontas), i'm definitely gonna have to go with Mulan. She's got the coolest soundtrack lol

If you could live anywhere....? I don't think i have too much of a preference besides NOT the city (but within an hour of one), and NOT the northeast (no offense to you massachusettians lol). It needs to have hills/mountains and big trees and wildflowers and cold streams and wildlife and no negative temperatures in the winter haha

favorite class in school? If we're talking general subjects, Math and English. Specifically though, my favorite classes (uninfluenced by the teacher) have been Differential Equations, Dynamics, Structures, Structural Dynamics. I suppose it would have been simpler to say Structural Dynamics though, since it's basically a combination of the first 3.

what kind of car do you drive? Now that i have it back from Jay... lol. I drive a 96? 2 Door Ford Ranger with power nothing, lovingly named 'Tiny Tim"

describe your favorite racing underwears! lol well. it depends on if i'm wearing spandex. If that's the case, i've really only got one choice, and it's quite boring. If i'm wearing floppy shorts though, i have a blue pair of unders with bubbles on them that make me happy. hahah

what do you think about when you race? Hmm. that's changing as i get better at it lol. I used to try to think about nothing at all, since the more i think the worse i used to do... But now i've decided that i do better when i think. i suppose what i think about depends on how long i'm running for, but since this is xc i'll go with the 5k... usually i think about making sure i'm relaxed for the first mile, having fun, staying close enough to the people i want to beat... then the 2nd mile i start looking up and pack hopping to make sure i'm still working hard enough, thinking about how all i need to do is go hard for 10 more minutes and then i can fall on the ground and be done, then the 3rd mile i start fixing my form, surging, imagining myself telling people my new PR and how i wanted to give up but didn't.

do you text much? About average i'd say. much less now that i'm not with jay and i don't feel the need to be in constant communication.

describe your prom experience. hahaha the first year i skipped prom and went with the BF to a Blink 182 concert, which was amazing. then the next year we had broken up right before hand and i was still feeling sorry for myself, so i went with my best friends brother... haha he was an alright date, but i was only half there and it was sooo not my thing in the first place, so it pretty much sucked. the after party was better (we hadn't discovered alchohol, so it was a completely sober experience), but i'd pick the concert over prom any day.

which side of the brain do you use the most? creative right brain (geometry) or logic/order left brain (algebra)
lol. i used to be a very right brained musician/writer, but stupid engineering school has balanced me out lol.


love, Me!

Go see Wall-E!!!

that is all.

-Jen

so its been a while....

hey yall!!
i know its been a long time since my last post. alot has happened in my house since the last. i had this HUGE and i mean HUGE deadline at work June 30th and i made it with 10 minutes to spare...no joke. it was crazy crazy...id work, run, eat, and then passout. yep that was my life for about 3 weeks. and in the middle of all that my sisters car got stolen out of my driveway. then my dad found it...crazy i know! it went to the shop for a week or so, we got it back and 4 days later got stolen again. yep, and we still dont have it. so we are short a car, and then today my mom's just bout died. haha ironic isnt it? but anyways........
i learned how to surf! yep like really surf. i mean ive stood up before but now i stand up more than i fall. but i do fall alot though...ugh, i got sea lice. it is horrible! it burned sooo bad. they put meat stuff on it and it stopped for a little bit, but then it hit me again so i got sprayed down with burn relief...that bubbly stuff was amazing! I went to Busch Gardens too....i rode Sheikra! ok i love rollercoasters but man was i scared! we sat on top of the 90 degree drop for 6 seconds...yes we counted. i screamed so loud, but the big guy next to me was louder, and more high pitched :)

Im excited to go to camp!! where exactly are we going? some lake, mountain?
So my parents are freaking about the whole housing situation...they first told us we would know something the first of July. And we didnt hear anything so of course my mom called, and they said the last week or so in July. I sure hope I get a place to live : /

well hope you are all doing well....see you soon ya!

-b

hello there

sooooo i'm a little behind on this blogging-journal-thingymobob so i figured i'd catch up a little bit...but just a little lol.
I did survey #1...but that's it soo now i'm just gonna jump to #3 before #4 comes out :)

Initials: KLK

Age, birthday: 8/27/89

Introvert or extrovert? it really depends on the people around me...i wouldnt call myself an introvert, but i dont think i'm outgoing enough to be an extrovert either...but i'm usually happy and silly and like to make other people cheerful too

Are you a girly girl? Nope...i'm too lazy for makeup...don't really enjoy shopping...and well i'm glad i'm going to a school where the majority is guys cuz they're generally more laid back
BUT runner-girls are usually an exception...they're always fun to hang out with

Do you believe in God?why/why not? Well, I wouldn't say I believe in any one God...but some higher power. I studied different religions and philosophies a little bit on my own and am really drawn to Taoism...it's interesting and has helped me be able to enjoy life as it comes and live with no regrets, which = happiness :)

Can you cook and what do you like to cook? I like to cook when it's for myself...because then I can customize whatever it is to my liking and not worry about other people's opinions...but if i have a recipe and ingredients and some method of cooking...well it usually comes out edible anyway

favorite actor, actress: will smith (I just saw Hancock and it was really good)

Running shoe brand: Asics alllllll the way...except for spikes...then i go Nike, but that's all i'll wear Nike for

How do you feel about facebook? It's good for communicating with other people and making plans

What makes you tick? (it's a hard one, interpret it freely) Staying active and wondering what kind of excitement will come my way next

hah!

Don't get offended, I just saw this and about died laughing.

THE
SPORT
OF
CROSS
COUNTRY
ENDURANCE
RUNNING
IS
ESSENTIAL_&
VITAL
IN
LIFE

A little bit of Florida

Hello!

Well, let me see, work is going well, we still haven't flight tested yet so that is getting a bit old, but I have been offered a position for after the completion of this project, so thats nice.

Running is going well, I raced in a 5K on the 4th, but I was so concerned with going out too hard again, I went out too slow, lol. Oh well, I ran faster then my last race, but it was still rather slow. I did hit my 'you have gone too hard for too many days' the day before the race, so I figured it wasn't that bad then, and I felt fine after the race was done.

I was very nervous about yesterday, I was on the verge of getting a migraine when I started my workout, though I was happy to find out, however, that the faster I went the the better I felt, so that was nice. My workout ended up turning out very well, I did my favorite cross country workout, and that was my AT/something I'm not suppose to be doing/AT/something I'm not suppose to be doing/cool down. Coach ended up catching my cool down and asked my if I was doing my AT miles, lol. I might have picked up the pace a little bit. I did also get in trouble for the rest of the workout, but that's another story.

So, as for everything else, it's going well. Just working and running, lol, with the occasional bike ride. OH the TOUR DE FRANCE started the other day, and that consumes my life too!! Everyone should watch, it's going to be a great tour this year, lol. The Olympic Trials are good too, but I always seem to miss the events I want to watch, at least with the tour I can catch it 6 other times during the day if I miss it the first time, lol.

Take care everyone!! Run Safe!!

Lori

P.S. I'm getting a new bike!! Alex knows about it, the one I want is actually in her town, lol. But I don't think I'm going to get that one, I don't like leather, lol.

happy almost birthday Kira :)

haha take this with a grain of salt... i got a little carried away...

Ahh! I can't believe it's here already... my last season ever as a cross country runner! Man, it sneaks up on you! i think i might seem like some nazi obsessive runner at the moment... and maybe it's true hehe. But I won't lie, i've got a lot of wasted/injured time to make up for... There have been times i'm sure where i'm sure everyone wanted to punch me in the face for being so slow and retarded LOL. but right now I've got so much excitement built up, i just can't keep it locked up anymore!

oh, while i remember to say this: i hope you all find my random stories encouraging and not bragging, etc. it occurred to me recently that it might appear that way. but the real reason why i get so fanatical about running over the summer is because it's the only time of year where I have no stress, and I can be patient and not fret about a bad week or two of training. It's my time to build up confidence and excitement so when school starts and everything in my life gets turned upseide down, running can be my constant. If I do everything right over the summer, fall becomes just a matter of following through. Not to be confused with going through the motions -It's more like all the hard work has been done, all the decisions have been made already, all the planning is finished, so now i can have some fun, go crazy, etc. My goal is to spend the summer gathering momentum so that in the fall all i have to do is strap myself in and enjoy the ride.


More than anything though, i'm just super excited about what we can do this season. Last year's xc team made the transition from having a goal of winning regionals to having an expectation of destroying it. But this summer i've been spending a lot of time trying to figure out how to get us to make another big leap. Our all american 5x8 during track season put Riddle on the map, but this fall, I really want to make people look. I want to show them who we are and what we stand for, and let them know we're not going anywhere. In the past, we've had a goal of "making a strong appearance at nationals". But I don't see that mentality getting us where we have the potential to go.

I guess though, It's easy for us to sit here and say we want to accomplish "x" goal. But it's quite another to have 10 girls wake up every morning for the next month and think about how each day will help make or break that goal. Since i struggle with this myself, i'm going to assume other people do as well. So I put a youtube video of the nationals course on the side panel. I'm hoping to use it not only for visualization purposes, but as a way to keep everything in perspective, knowing that nationals isn't this big scary thing, and it's not some abstract goal. it's real, it's tangible, and it's there for the taking. When we get there, we're going to be capable of doing some serious dammage. But then again, so are 30 other teams. And all of them training right now, all of them preparing for the same 20 minutues of the same exact day. The question is, when we get to that day, are we going to know deep down that we worked just a little bit harder, wanted it just a little bit more?

As far as I can tell, that remains to be seen.
We can kid ourselves all summer about our training, about our expectations. But once you hit the line at nationals, you either want it or you don't. And trust me, that's not a decision that can be made in november.

i broke my nalga

so, for those of you who don't recall, this past track season i started having issues with my hip. and so i started doing some IT band stuff to try and fix it, and it seemed to be working for a while. and then the pain kinda went away. so in the last month that i've been at home, i've noticed that the pain has started to come back (pretty badly at times, which worried me). yesterday was my appointment with my orthopedic, and he concluded that i have glutenous mediorous (sp) tendinitis. and so, to answer jen's question, "how do you get tendinitis in you're but?"...like any form of tendinitis it is over use of the tendon b/c the muscle is fatigued. and b/c of my plantars problems on my right side i'm over compensating on the left side (which is the hip that hurts), and so my "nalga grande" basically is tired, and so the tendons along the "side butt" are what are being overused, and i feel pain in my hip (the side, not the joint). in regards to training, i am still allowed to run (only until it hurts) and then i can always bike, swim, elliptical, and do w/e other cardio that doesn't put crazy stress on it.

sadly i can't say that my weekday workouts have been as productive as some others that i'm reading about...jen i am jealous...i go to the YMCA after dinner (b/c i'm scared to run in the dark by myself) and so that way i can lift afterward and use med balls for core and stuff like that. and then it starts the next morning at 5am for a short run before work. and i'm one of those people who has a really hard time functioning w/o 8 hours of sleep. so lately i've found myself sacrificing sleep for training and vice versa. work is great, but it is work nonetheless.

and on a more girly note...i was in san francisco last weekend w/ the sibling and the madre (sibling had to register for school)...and it is just not possible for me to go the city w/o doing some good shopping. my shoes were regularly $48, and i got them for $15...my jeans were regularly $50, and i got them for $20...and on haight st, i scored some nannette lepore for 20 bucks...it was exciting.

i wish you all a very happy 4th of July!

just another day in paradise

man.
these past few days have been pretty fantastic as far as running goes. i'm finally starting to incorporate some speedwork, which is exciting!

• monday i swam the beach channel in the picture, which was my first open water experience. it was nice not to have to turn around every 10 seconds, but the salt water definitely made up for it... i had a good time though.. it took me a little over a half an hour to make it down and back. i jogged for a mile on the sand when i was done, just to get my legs moving, but it wasn't a very pleasant experience.
• tuesday was the first day in a while i really felt up for a double. ended up doing 35 minutes moving pretty good in the morning and 40 in the evening including 2x5 min @ V02-ish. i also ran into a trainign group that meets on tuesdays, so i'll be joining them next week :)
• wednesday was 45 minutes with striders at the end. haha i guess i was moving pretty good becuase a guy started clapping when i was done and said "nice windsprints", which made me feel good about myself since i definitely wasn't sprinting. lol.
• today was just plain rediculous. i knew i wanted to do some sort of speed, but i couldn't bring myself to make up a pre-defined distance or pace. so i did a warmup for once, and just got back out there and started running... and next thing i knew i was hauling.... waaaay faster than i'd ever gone before for a non-interval workout. probably around 6:30 pace or so, maybe a bit over... either way, it would have been wise to slow down... after all, i already did my v02 for the week, and 6:30 isn't exactly AT, even on my best days... but i decided hey, i'll go with it for a while... it's summer, what's the worst that could happen? i figured it would probably last a mile or so and then i'd be toast anyways, so i'd learn my lesson and be done with it. for some reason though, it was a one pace day, and - despite my protests - it was gonna be 6:30's, take it or leave it... so i took it, lol.... for at least two and a half miles... closer to three i'm guessing by the timing of it.... yum! i did get a bit of help though, seeing as it started raining smack in the middle of my run, right when i wanted to call it quits... and of course that extra bit of adrenaline hit me hard and next thing i knew, vroom vroom! here we go again... lol

i have 3 weeks before my next real test. i'm running another 5k, and hopefully it will go better than the pie one did. this one's for mango's - much healthier lol. last year i got 3rd overall and they gave me a box made of mango tree wood that i now use as a whiteboard marker holder, hehe. hopefully i'll get another useful trinket this year :) who knows, maybe i'll win! that could be cool....

-jen

p.s. alex if you read this before you post next, what exactly is tendonitis of the nalga, and how in the world do you get it? isn't the butt pretty much muscle and fat? where does the tendon part come in to the picture? lol i'm impressed.

for those of us who aren't D1

"It's not about getting a scholarship, getting drafted, or making Sports Center. It's a deep need in us that comes from the heart. We need to practice, to play, to lift, to hustle, to sweat. We do it all for our teammates, and for that student in our calculus class we don't even know. We don't practice with a future major league first baseman; we practice with a future sports agent. We don't lift weights with a future Olympic wrestler; we lift with a future doctor. We don't run with a future Wimbledon champion; we run with a future CEO. It's a bigger part of us than our friends and family can understand. Sometimes we play for 2,000 fans; sometimes 25. But we still play hard. You cheer for us because you know us. You know more than just our names. Like all of you, we are students first. We don't sign autographs. But we do sign graduate school applications, MCAT exams, and student body petitions. When we miss a kick or strike out, we don't let down an entire state. We only let down our teammates, coaches, and fans. But the hurt is still the same. We train hard, lift, throw, run, kick, tackle, shoot, dribble, and lift some more, and then we go to class. And in that class we are nothing more than students. It's about pride--in ourselves, in our school. It's about our love and passion for the game. And when it's over, when we walk off that court or field for the last time, our hearts crumble. Those tears are real. But deep down inside, we are very proud of ourselves. "

canuck

Not being an American, the 4th of July is not that exciting except for the fact that I get the day off. I am going to see fireworks tonight at the college close by but thats the extent of my excitement for I am babysitting tomorrow night, double pay! Other annoying thing is both my parents and my boyfriend are away for the week and just about all of my friends too, so my dogs are my running buddies for the mean time. I don't know why I didn't decide to go anywhere, hah!

Running has been good, since they're away I am kinda awful at avoiding crappy for you food but whatever, a few days won't kill me right?
I got a bonus at work (sorta) so I went out and bought new running shorts/shirts/etc which always inspires me to run more haha. I want to get new shoes even though I don't need them for another 3 weeks or so.

just over a month before we go to camp, uh oh. haha

Kira