Gourmet Runner

Do you remember a few weeks back, when I was all braggy about running in Florida in February/March? Sunny mornings around a lake with a light breeze off the water have turned, cruelly, into humid stretches of time where I am humbly reminded of my own limitations. You guys, I see these gazelle-like creatures, men and women alike, who prance on my running route with compression socks, a soft glow of perspiration at their brow. It's beautiful. It's also a harsh reminder that I am not them. I am currently running in the thinnest, smallest items of clothing I can without offending anyone (shirt stays on, people). I dare not step outside without some awful visor or wide-brimmed hat. When I hop in the shower after a run, my face is a deep crimson that causes my husband to voice his concern for my general well-being. Have I mentioned this is what happens after my easy runs, with a few walk breaks thrown in? Yeah. It's humbling. Now, I'm not complaining. It's beautiful...

In December, I signed up for a trail-ish 50k in the Seattle area called the Pigtails Flat Ass . When race day rolled around in less than desirable weather conditions, I had an upset stomach, my heart wasn't into it and there was a mistake at signup that said I was supposed to run the 26.2 instead of the 50k.  I was given the chance to correct the mistake and run the ultra distance, but I happily declined. That's not a good sign. When you are standing in the cold at 8 in the morning, you should want to be there. When you have paid money to wake up early and run through slushy trails, you should be happy about it. Post-race - the resigned smile. "Can we go home, please?" Running is a cruel mistress. Some days it feels phenomenal, and other times it sucks. That's how it goes, and I accept that. But in December, something switched in me. I realized that I was HATING 95% of my runs. I was - and still am, occasionally- treating the act of running as some kin...

When I got on the plane to fly from Washington to Florida, and after I had paid a silly amount of money to connect to the Internet from 35,00 in the sky, I received an email from Online Shoes asking if I would like to try and review the New Balance W980 Fresh Foam running shoe. Never one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I gladly accepted without even looking up anything about the shoe. About six weeks ago, I received the shoes on my doorstep, unpacked the box like a kid on Christmas, and kind of...grimaced. The first time I saw these shoes, I thought they looked a little gaudy. Not quite Hoka/Vibram level obnoxious, but definitely too bright and clunky-looking for my personal tastes. As of today, the color combination no longer shocks me every time I open my closet door, and I actually quite like the brightness. However, I would certainly not recommend them for anyone in search of running shoes to blend in. On that note, what happened to boring running shoes? Are they all n...

One of the hardest things about moving, for me, was wondering how the cats would adjust each time. Although our cats are super travelers at this stage, I feel really guilty every time we have to pack them up and force them onto a plane. I remember my grandma telling me years ago that when she moved with a cat, they put butter on their paws. That way, the cats spent the first day in a new house licking their paws to get them clean, and that was enough time to lose the "smell" of the old house. I love that story, and I wish the same principle applied to longer moves. Anyway, that's a super long intro to say that for the fellow cat ladies out there, our three fur babies are insanely happy in this jungle gym of a home here in Florida. It's warm, there are plenty of sunny spots to curl up a take a nap, and they have lots of room to spread out. Despite the space, of course, they still usually want to take a nap on my head at night. Obviously. They also love climbing on ou...

“I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Millennial Central for Kirin. I received product samples to facilitate my review as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation.” I love sushi. There, I said it. I have a very deep, ongoing, and near-spiritual relationship with the nori, the soy sauce and the fatty deliciousness of raw salmon. I also have an aversion to work and the actual creation of said sushi.  I have all the super-handy tools for rolling sushi, but the lazy woman in me would really just prefer to order takeout. Lately, Tim and I have been making rice-less sushi. Yes, this is an aberration, and yes, technically I guess it is just sashimi once you've taken out the rice. However, cucumbers make an effective salmon and cream cheese delivery system, so don't knock it until you try it. Option #1: Seriously Lazy. No, like REALLY, REALLY LAZY. -Slice cucumbers -Spread cream cheese on said cucumbers -Layer on chunks of raw salmon...

What's four months between friends, right? The last post I wrote was back in December, when I discussed the fact that Tim and I moved from Georgia to Seattle. The Pacific Northwest is beautiful, it has the best running weather, and there were bumper sticks with bleeding-heart liberal slogans on the back of every Eco-friendly car. I was in love. Except things don't ever work out quite that simply, do they? Long story still pretty long (sorry about that), I am writing this post from Central Florida. A few months ago, from our apartment in Bellevue, Washington, Tim spotted his dream house. He has long been into Usonian-style homes a la Frank Lloyd Wright, and this random, run-down, 1950s house in the middle of nowhere, Florida, was perfect. But it was in Florida. And we JUST moved from Georgia to Washington. To top it all off, Tim started a new mid-century modern furniture company: Trystcraft ! If you like MCM style, Danish lounge chairs and high-end pieces from the likes of ...