The view from my desk each morning as the sun peeks through Emigration Canyon.
I'll never be classified as a morning person, but this definitely takes the edge off.
10/24/10
10/19/10
Illusions
Um, talk about creative. This artist applies acrylic paints onto live models to make them appear to be in a painting. I'd love to randomly walk past a painted someone on the street. Yes, staring is rude -- but I'd throw caution to the wind and stare like a creep. Cause that's just awesome.
And hey -- while your eyes are all tripped out, where's Saturn?!?
Anyone else remember these? Took me what felt like years to train my eyes to cooperate. But oh that feeling of accomplishment when I finally got it! Set those goals high, kids.
(via A Cup of Jo)
And hey -- while your eyes are all tripped out, where's Saturn?!?
Anyone else remember these? Took me what felt like years to train my eyes to cooperate. But oh that feeling of accomplishment when I finally got it! Set those goals high, kids.
10/17/10
PoW : Oct 10-17
Jordan River Temple
The temple my family subconsciously wanted me to receive my endowment in.
The temple my family subconsciously wanted me to receive my endowment in.
Family: what do you have against Oquirrh?
Still laughing :)
10/13/10
... and then I ran for a really long time.
Anyone else feel like time is just flying by and disappearing without even asking? I meant to post this last week but as per usual, life happens. How rude. (Eww. Olsen twins Full House flashback….)
We got down to St. George on Friday evening and stopped by the expo to pick up my packet. Talk about intimidating. Everyone looked so elite and I couldn’t help but think how much I didn’t fit in. But everyone now and again I’d see a “normal” looking person like myself and instantly feel relieved. See? We can do it too! After the expo and a quick trip to Walmart we settled in for the night. Too bad “settling in” didn’t really entail too much sleep considering my nerves were eating away at me. Finally I decided to just get up, get ready, and get myself in line for the bus.
On the bus ride up I sat next to a man who looked like he’d done this a thousand times. The whole drive he was taking down a ginormous sub sandwich. Sheesh. If I had tried to eat an entire sub sandwich right before the race there would be guaranteed puke by mile 3. We rode through the city which was pretty alive for that time of morning. Then we made a turn toward the canyon and the city lights disappeared. As we went further up all I could see in the pitch black was the steady stream of buses up ahead of us. It was almost eerie but slightly pretty, much like my lightening bug Panamanian bus ride last year. Yet the feeling that we were all doing this together gave me an odd sense of comfort.
We were greeted at the top by spotlights and TONS of people. I got off the bus and headed straight for the porta potty lines, knowing they would be ridiculously long and there wasn’t much time before the gun went off. I chose a random line and was surprised to find my roommate, Charlotte, right in front of me. What are the chances? I’m still convinced it wasn’t coincidence. We were able to talk and stretch together which helped calm both our nerves. I had done the majority of my long runs alone and had intended to run the marathon on my own as well, but having someone to start with sounded nice.
We were barely through the line when the gun went off. We rushed up to the crowd and made our way to the starting line. We threw our jackets off to the side, hugged each other goodbye, and started our longest run yet. For the first 3 or 4 miles we yoyo-ed back and forth with each other until we randomly fell into the same comfortable pace. Having never actually run together it was strange for it work out as it did (we ended up running the entire race together which is something that helped us both a quite a bit).
It was really pretty up there. I took water and Gatorade every chance I could and just kinda got into a groove. The sunrise hit at about mile 8 (?) which was definitely a sight to see. About mile 12 or 13 my left IT band starting tinging a little and my right hip flexor tightened up. Not ideal but I did kind of expect it at some point. I could also feel my toes start to curl around the top of my orthotics which I knew would mean blisters. This hadn’t happened in my previous long runs so it was kind of a surprise. But I was able to focus on other things and forget about it for the most part. By about mile 16 I had had enough of my waist pack and decided to carry my gels and throw my pack to Charlotte’s family when we saw them next. And by mile 18 or 19 this was us:
I was surprised by how good I felt. Maybe it was race day excitement. Maybe it was running with someone (did I make training harder on myself than it needed to be??) But no matter – we were feeling good.
By about mile 22 I saw my parents on the side of the road – fresh with some flat Coke to give me a little more energy for those last 4 miles. My awesome dad had agreed to run that last bit with me so he jumped in at this point (I know, I know – frowned upon by officials. But it helped.) And so we went – finally making our way down to St. George. And can I just say how awesome all the spectators were? There were people lined up all along the road cheering us on. Sometimes they’d even call us by name which startled me every time until I remembered that our names were on our bibs. There were even a few misters on the side of the road to run through which felt more refreshing than I can even tell you.
My “wall” snuck up on me when we hit St. George, yet by some miracle I kept moving. I’m continually surprised by how much of running really is mental.
I didn’t know the route that well so every corner we turned I hoped I would spy the finish line. But it seemed that we kept turning and turning. AND TURNING. Until that final turn when I saw the banner of balloons. By this point I was so ready to be done so I pulled some extra ummp out of somewhere (still not sure where) and just went for it. The sooner I crossed that finish line the sooner I could stretch out my aching muscles, right? My dad left the course right before the chutes but I could still hear him cheering me on as he ran on the side. I looked to my left and saw my brother and his cute family holding up signs and cheering me on.
My only “battle wounds” were a sore IT band and some blisters on my feet. Not bad. I keep getting asked if I cried when I crossed the finish line. I was close, but no tears. But you know what did in fact get me teary eyed? (everyone get out your Kleenexes) All the support I got from family and friends. Some of my family came down to support me and those who couldn’t come made it clear they really wished they could be there. I had countless friends who were so thoughtful to send me good luck phone calls, text messages, emails, Facebook messages. And then afterwards to see how it all went. I was a bit overwhelmed by just how many people took the time to remember and cheer me on. I’m definitely a lucky girl.
Okay so St. George Marathon. I DID IT! Over the last couple months I’ve talked to pretty much everyone I know who runs, desperately trying to glean all the experience I possibly could. I heard first marathon horror stories, success stories, embarrassing stories, etc etc. A pretty broad spectrum. And it seemed that those first experiences weren’t always directly tied to the runner’s preparation for the race. I can honestly say that I tried my hardest to put my time in and stay on track with my training. I’m not the fastest runner or the most experienced runner, but I sure tried. Hard. And so with that I was confident that I could at least finish. Possibly hanging on by a very thin thread, but finish nonetheless. But it was those other unknown variables that kept my mind swirling. The weather. How my body would react if I tried the gels/bars they were passing out. WHAT IF I SLIP ON AN ORANGE PEEL AND FALL? (Oh wait, almost really did that)
Well, I can gratefully say that this first marathon was a really good one. Great, in fact. And I feel so lucky for that because I know that isn’t always the case. It was sunny, the atmosphere was (of course) exciting, and things just seemed to fall into place. Let’s just say that one very appreciative prayer was said on Saturday night.
Here’s my rundown. This is definitely longer than what I generally post so I’ll have to ask you and your attention span to please indulge me.
We got down to St. George on Friday evening and stopped by the expo to pick up my packet. Talk about intimidating. Everyone looked so elite and I couldn’t help but think how much I didn’t fit in. But everyone now and again I’d see a “normal” looking person like myself and instantly feel relieved. See? We can do it too! After the expo and a quick trip to Walmart we settled in for the night. Too bad “settling in” didn’t really entail too much sleep considering my nerves were eating away at me. Finally I decided to just get up, get ready, and get myself in line for the bus. 
We were barely through the line when the gun went off. We rushed up to the crowd and made our way to the starting line. We threw our jackets off to the side, hugged each other goodbye, and started our longest run yet. For the first 3 or 4 miles we yoyo-ed back and forth with each other until we randomly fell into the same comfortable pace. Having never actually run together it was strange for it work out as it did (we ended up running the entire race together which is something that helped us both a quite a bit).
It was really pretty up there. I took water and Gatorade every chance I could and just kinda got into a groove. The sunrise hit at about mile 8 (?) which was definitely a sight to see. About mile 12 or 13 my left IT band starting tinging a little and my right hip flexor tightened up. Not ideal but I did kind of expect it at some point. I could also feel my toes start to curl around the top of my orthotics which I knew would mean blisters. This hadn’t happened in my previous long runs so it was kind of a surprise. But I was able to focus on other things and forget about it for the most part. By about mile 16 I had had enough of my waist pack and decided to carry my gels and throw my pack to Charlotte’s family when we saw them next. And by mile 18 or 19 this was us:
I was surprised by how good I felt. Maybe it was race day excitement. Maybe it was running with someone (did I make training harder on myself than it needed to be??) But no matter – we were feeling good.
By about mile 22 I saw my parents on the side of the road – fresh with some flat Coke to give me a little more energy for those last 4 miles. My awesome dad had agreed to run that last bit with me so he jumped in at this point (I know, I know – frowned upon by officials. But it helped.) And so we went – finally making our way down to St. George. And can I just say how awesome all the spectators were? There were people lined up all along the road cheering us on. Sometimes they’d even call us by name which startled me every time until I remembered that our names were on our bibs. There were even a few misters on the side of the road to run through which felt more refreshing than I can even tell you.
My “wall” snuck up on me when we hit St. George, yet by some miracle I kept moving. I’m continually surprised by how much of running really is mental.
And then the finish line. Can I just tell you what an amazing feeling it was to cross that line? To know that all of my hard work had paid off and I had just run my very first marathon. 26.2 MILES! And with a final time of 4:05:54! My goal had been to get 5 hours or slightly under so to see that as my finish time made me one happy girl (with some very achy quads).
My only “battle wounds” were a sore IT band and some blisters on my feet. Not bad. I keep getting asked if I cried when I crossed the finish line. I was close, but no tears. But you know what did in fact get me teary eyed? (everyone get out your Kleenexes) All the support I got from family and friends. Some of my family came down to support me and those who couldn’t come made it clear they really wished they could be there. I had countless friends who were so thoughtful to send me good luck phone calls, text messages, emails, Facebook messages. And then afterwards to see how it all went. I was a bit overwhelmed by just how many people took the time to remember and cheer me on. I’m definitely a lucky girl.
And there you have it. St. George Marathon 2010. Not sure if I’m crazy or not, but that following week I signed up for the Ogden Marathon in May 2011. Fitness by fear, right? Here’s to a second as good as the first!
10/11/10
PoW : Oct 3 - Oct 10
Is it still a "Photo of the Week" if it's actually TWO photos? Answer: yes.
Still St. George, Utah. Cause who can resist colors like these?
10/3/10
PoW : Sept 26 - Oct 3
St. George, Utah
Those are two very enthusiastic thumbs up in case you're wondering. More later!
Those are two very enthusiastic thumbs up in case you're wondering. More later!
9/28/10
9/21/10
Consider yourself warned
So I love pictures. SHOCKER? Nah. Anyone who has known me longer than five minutes knows how I feel about photography. This past July I completed my “picture of the day” goal in which I would find something to document every day for one year (Turned out to be more of a fiscal year picture of the day opposed to a calendar year picture of the day. But the amount of days and effort were the same so I’m counting it.) I randomly posted some of them on my blog but the majority I hoarded on my laptop. The intent was (IS!) to make my own book commemorating the year.
Although some days it seemed tedious, the majority of the days I loved slowing myself down and looking for something fitting to photograph. People, places, food – you name it. Which brings me to my point: I’ve missed it. Enough that I wanna do it again. But this time around I’ll be posting some of on my blog. Now don’t you worry – I won’t bombard you with each and every daily picture. Once a week will be plenty. But giving myself an “assignment” like this again forces me to open my eyes and see things around me a little differently. And hopefully posting some on my blog will be enough of a reminder to keep on top of it again.
No clever name. Sorry. But it starts today. Right now, actually. My photo of this past week is the result of a really peaceful Sunday walk through our new neighborhood. Oh yeah, by the way we moved AGAIN. I mean, why not? Gotta support my local DI. Not to mention that I love our new place so I’m totally on board. But anyway. Back to Sunday walks. Beautiful light, slight breeze, good conversation, nice and tranquil.
P.S. On a different note, new Maroon 5 album out today … and a new Josh Groban one in November! I've been putting my race day playlist together and discovered that my iPod definitely needs some fresh meat. No Lady Gaga pun intended.
Although some days it seemed tedious, the majority of the days I loved slowing myself down and looking for something fitting to photograph. People, places, food – you name it. Which brings me to my point: I’ve missed it. Enough that I wanna do it again. But this time around I’ll be posting some of on my blog. Now don’t you worry – I won’t bombard you with each and every daily picture. Once a week will be plenty. But giving myself an “assignment” like this again forces me to open my eyes and see things around me a little differently. And hopefully posting some on my blog will be enough of a reminder to keep on top of it again.
No clever name. Sorry. But it starts today. Right now, actually. My photo of this past week is the result of a really peaceful Sunday walk through our new neighborhood. Oh yeah, by the way we moved AGAIN. I mean, why not? Gotta support my local DI. Not to mention that I love our new place so I’m totally on board. But anyway. Back to Sunday walks. Beautiful light, slight breeze, good conversation, nice and tranquil.
Photo of the Week September 12-19
P.S. On a different note, new Maroon 5 album out today … and a new Josh Groban one in November! I've been putting my race day playlist together and discovered that my iPod definitely needs some fresh meat. No Lady Gaga pun intended.
9/15/10
"Uncommonly Good"
Drank carbonation, spilled coleslaw all over my jacket, got a stomachache from fried chocolate donuts (WORTH IT), and sported the mace on our walk back to the car. Not bad for a quick stop at the fair. Given a few more hours I would have topped it off by nearly throwing up on the Gravitron and stepping in a pile of gigantor cow dung. Have I mentioned how much I love the state fair?! No but really, I do. It’s so eclectic and entertaining and I look forward to it every year.
Goal for next year: WIN A RIBBON. In what? Well, not exactly sure what yet. I'm open to suggestions but it's gotta be awesome so I can blow away the steep competition. Bucket List!
9/5/10
Peaches & Cream
Oh hey guys. Hungry? Do you like peaches? And cream cheese? Actually who am I kidding – everyone likes peaches and cream cheese. Well I tried a new muffin recipe this week and I have to say that I REALLY liked it. I thought about trying to make them low-fat and quickly ditched the idea. Maybe next time. But I needed to know what to compare the low-fat recipe to, right? Glad we're on the same page.
Anyway. Sweet, moist, yummy goodness. That’s all you really need to know.
Well well. Posting a recipe. How very domestic of me!
9/1/10
Just a few things, Mr. Mayer:
#1 Lovely show last night.
#2 This is how I feel when you don't sing Say or Dreaming With a Broken Heart.
#3 I forgive you for that because of your fantastic rendition of Slow Dancing in a Burning Room.
#4 You sure do make a lot of odd facial expressions when you sing.
#5 But this one, John -- this one crossed a line somewhere. A big, scary line:
#2 This is how I feel when you don't sing Say or Dreaming With a Broken Heart.
#3 I forgive you for that because of your fantastic rendition of Slow Dancing in a Burning Room.
#4 You sure do make a lot of odd facial expressions when you sing.
#5 But this one, John -- this one crossed a line somewhere. A big, scary line:
#6 The Karate Kid headband was a real nice touch.
#7 Even though my toes were frozen the entire time I still had fun. Gracias!
8/23/10
Morning Light
A weekend for the books! But I won’t post about it until Curlie has because, well, it’s her goodness to be shared :)
So instead I’ll just go ahead and take it back a month or so. Pioneer Day weekend. The lovely Franklin Basin. When my family and I went camping there I went on a little ATV ride with my parents. I was kicking myself for not bringing my camera on the ride because the evening light was insanely gorgeous. So I begged and pleaded and talked Jennie into waking up early with me to catch the morning light instead (you know -- strength in numbers). These are some of the results of our morning ride:
Aside from running, the chance to photograph something like this is pretty much the only thing that will get me out of bed any earlier than absolutely necessary. Oh, and maybe banana nutella crepes.
Mmm ... banana nutella crepes.
So instead I’ll just go ahead and take it back a month or so. Pioneer Day weekend. The lovely Franklin Basin. When my family and I went camping there I went on a little ATV ride with my parents. I was kicking myself for not bringing my camera on the ride because the evening light was insanely gorgeous. So I begged and pleaded and talked Jennie into waking up early with me to catch the morning light instead (you know -- strength in numbers). These are some of the results of our morning ride:
Aside from running, the chance to photograph something like this is pretty much the only thing that will get me out of bed any earlier than absolutely necessary. Oh, and maybe banana nutella crepes.
Mmm ... banana nutella crepes.
8/19/10
Wednesday Evening
Anyone else happen to catch the sunset last night? When I walked into Smith's the sky was looking all sorts of gloomy and angsty. About 10 minutes later I walked out and saw this business:
Um, YEAH! Talk about majestic. Almost made me to drop an entire carton of eggs -- except for the fact that that's impossible on account of my ninja reflexes. Oh if only I had a quarter for every time they've saved the day ... I could totally buy myself a frosty. REGULAR SIZE.
Um, YEAH! Talk about majestic. Almost made me to drop an entire carton of eggs -- except for the fact that that's impossible on account of my ninja reflexes. Oh if only I had a quarter for every time they've saved the day ... I could totally buy myself a frosty. REGULAR SIZE.
8/12/10
Seattle > NYC
Saw this today and thought it was fun – this guy hitchhiked from Seattle to New York City with 23 rides in 7 days, documenting his travels the entire time. Reminds me of the time a good friend of mine wanted me to join him in a “race” he and some of his friends were doing: start in Salt Lake and see who could make it to Mount Rushmore first – via hitchhiking. Sometimes I kinda regret turning him down and missing the chance to cross off a part of my bucket list that I didn’t even know existed. But then I remember how right now I’m alive and well instead of lying face down in a ditch with my face on a milk carton (do they even do that anymore?) and I’m suddenly okay with my decision.
This guy looks like he had quite the adventure, though. I admit -- I'm a little bit jealous. I might have to settle for a good 'ol fashioned road trip. I hear there's a giant rubber band ball somewhere in the midwest.
This guy looks like he had quite the adventure, though. I admit -- I'm a little bit jealous. I might have to settle for a good 'ol fashioned road trip. I hear there's a giant rubber band ball somewhere in the midwest.
8/9/10
The Sukster
Everyone, meet Suki.
Suki, meet Everyone.
So apparently my parents missed our little Sullivan a little more than they expected to .... enter Suki (Pronounced sue-key). Isn't she the cutest little thing you've ever seen?? Suki is a Napoleon, which I learned is part Persian part Munchkin. (Don't worry -- they have a website. And a Facebook page. And a Twitter group. Huh? Who knew there were such enthusiasts out there?) Anyway. Suki. She's soft and cuddly and pretty much the sweetest thing you've ever seen. Cuter than every single 0-3 jumper you've ever ooed and awwed over at a baby shower. Yeah, that cute.
Suki got some serious attention this weekend when my parents brought her camping with the family. Two little 5 year old girls squabbling over a kitten was a sight to see. Apparently bordering on apocalyptic at times. Buuut guess who got to ride home with her all cuddled up in their lap? Pretty sure I'm her favorite ... until I'm not at my mom and dad's house for a few weeks and she forgets who I am. But it's fine cause I'm prepared to pull a 50 First Dates and make her fall in love with me again every time -- with the help of my laser pointer. I got this.
Everybody together now: AAAAHHHHHHH........
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