I did it!!

I kicked up into handstand...and stayed there!! Granted, Glenna helped and made sure I didn't topple over backwards, but I. DID. IT!!

Wheeeeee! I've been working all summer for this day! I signed up to take a week-long Anusara class--so far we've done some pretty crazy twisting, forward folds, standing poses and inversions. Tomorrow is arm balancing and Friday is *gasp* backbends. Who knows, maybe Urdvha dhanurasana (wheel pose) will be mine too!

And now I must go soak in my claw foot tub to prepare for tomorrow. 'night.

Fly-By Post

Whew! Where has December gone?! Oh right, I've been away for most of it. =)

Got home last Friday after a horrific day of travel: my airport shuttle didn't show up (had to take a cab $50 USD), my flight was delayed 3 hours, my bag was overweight ($75 USD later) I got an aisle seat (beside an old guy who got up a lot) and then, the last straw: my neck pillow had a hole! I did eventually make it home and swept out just as quickly to get my hair done (whacked more than a few inches off and covered up the sparkly bits) and then headed to physio.

Saturday, I went for a run! It felt great! That night I went with some friends to Loose Moose's "A Christmoose Carol". OMIGOD, I almost peed my pants! Loads of fun.

Sunday we headed to the mountains to our lovely home for the week, the Falconcrest Lodge. My bro picked well! Our suites were lovely.

Shopped in Banff on Monday, dinner at the Banff Springs.

Skied Lake Louise on Tuesday (icy, no snow and what was there was all man made) on my NEW SKIS! Let's just say I got a sweet deal: last year's demos, new bindings and tuned up and ready to go for what it would cost me to rent skis for the week. Stacy and I shared a lesson with Pete from New Zealand which was a good refresher. Fondue at the Grizzly House in Banff. Yum.

We headed to Sunshine on Wednesday and I was almost in tears before we started. The boots I was using (Stacy's old ones--she and my bro got new ones on Monday) were hurting my shins. I made it till just after lunch and then called it a day. Went back to town that night to buy boots that didn't hurt me. Dinner at the Grizzly Paw in Canmore.

Thursday: back to Sunshine for a fun filled day of skiing. I skied from 9 till 2:15 with no pain! But my quads were screaming at me, "You b&$#*h! We ran a marathon a week ago and now we're skiing?!" I listened to them. I had the most spectacular crash of anyone in the family and do you think my brother had his helmet cam on? NO. But it was great, really, it was! Dinner at the French Quarter in Canmore. Yum.

Friday: back to the city to see "A Christmas Carol". Dinner at the Keg, then back to family's hotel room for drinks, cards and dice.

Saturday: Santa arrived at Auntie's house! I made breakfast then we headed to Grandma's for dinner with the extended family. Back to family's hotel room for more drinks, games (Scrabble, anyone?) and The Big Bang Theory (there was a marathon on the comedy channel yesterday).

Today: Boxing Day shopping at 7. Drop of Stacy, grab my skis from their car, said a quick goodbye and then yoga at 9:30.

6:19:33

If I wouldn't have had to stop to pee, I'd have made my 6:15 goal! But I finished upright, smiling and uninjured. And pain-free, too! A better recap will follow, I promise!

More to come later. I spent the day scuba diving (BIG deal for this land-lubber who's terrified to put her face in the water). I didn't go deep, but I was submerged and breathing out of the tank! Saw some awesome marine life: sea turtles, barracuda, cute purple fishies and a humpbacked whale. PRICELESS.

Going to hit my mat for a down dog or two and then we're going out for dinner. The seafood here is fan-tab-u-lous! I've been walking lots (it's 1.5 miles to Michelle's hotel and that's where we've been leaving from every morning (sans marathon morning--I took a bus from the zoo) and worked out most of the li'l kinks and mitigating some of the damage of the fruity drinks and good food!

Tomorrow is kayaking! Whoo hoo!

Aloha!

Not long now!

In keeping with Garrath’s rules (Carol’s marathon instructor) I’ve set 3 goals:

Acceptable - what I will be happy with, such as a time or feeling.
Great - make this a little harder - time, pace, etc.
Freaking Awesome - my dream goal

Acceptable: 7:7:54 (less than walking the same race in 2006)
Great: 6:15:00
Freaking Awesome: Anything that starts with a 5!

Upright, smiling and uninjured goes without saying!

Aloha!

Raining Cats and Dogs!

That's what I woke up to yesterday! This is my third trip to Hawaii and I've never had a day like that before, so I guess I was due. And quite frankly, better Friday than Sunday race day!

I can see the finish line/area from my condo. Home is definitely within crawling distance at the end of the race!

I was to meet Michelle at the Expo and headed downstairs to see if I could hail a cab. No dice. But even with the rain it was still really nice out. Put a hat on my head and started walking....I found a cab about 3/4 mile later and within minutes was pulling up to the expo.

It seemed smaller this time...but the big banner is still out front (all the photos are on Michelle's camera) and the line ups went really quickly. We found the Running Skirts girls and I walked away with a new skirt, a skirt with tights and a really cool tank top. More photo ops, new hats for both of us and then over to the big mall.

There's no better way to spend a rainy day than shopping! Lulu, J. Crew, The Levi's Store, Banana Republic, Lucky Jeans.... my wallet is much lighter!

Anyway, the sun is finally shining (it was raining when I woke up) and I'm loving it! The forecast for tomorrow is good and I'm looking forward to it. The energy of over 20,000 runners is contagious!

Aloha!

Aloha!

I LOVE Hawaii!!

I've been up far too long, though. Got up this morning, finished packing and waited for my plumber friend to come over and rescue the knife mom dropped in the bathroom sink. Pee-ewww! Apparently the sink was this close to being fully clogged.

High-tailed it to the airport and then sat and waited in typical airport style. I thought all the renos at YYC were done, but not at Gate B20. What a joke! And nary a Starbucks in sight (which isn't necessarily a bad thing). Or water fountain. But I digress.

Had an hour and half between flights which I planned on having lunch during, but by the time I hit a bathroom, went through customs and security my flight to Honolulu was boarding! Which left me to purchase $13 of crappy airline food. My roast beef sammie became some beef, a slice of cheese and romaine lettuce sans bread. Then I had cheese and crackers.

Oh, and did I mention we were an hour late landing due to head winds? No? Well, we were. So I was Starvin' Marvin! Found the nearest restaurant which just so happens to be right (and I mean right) on the beach where I had the most delicious pina colada (when in Rome), veggies and shrimp and pasta in a wine sauce. YUM!

Veggin' out in my fabulous penthouse (with both a mountain and ocean view!) thinking I should hit the hay. Forecast for tomorrow is rain, but I intend to be at the Marathon Expo and/or the big mall all day!

Aloha!

The Countdown is On!

One more sleep!!

I've made a huge dent in my to-do list, but there's still plenty left. With that, I must start my day with a run! It's currently -2C and 74% humidity. In Honolulu, it's already 18C and 94% humidity!!

Forecast for Sunday: low 22, high 23, 20% chance of precipitation and it'll feel like 30C. Works for me!!

I have wi-fi in my condo, so I'll keep you updated. And you can track my progress on the Honolulu Marathon website on race day. Either way, please send speedy vibes my way on Sunday!

Aloha!

Points Plus--Day Two

After learning the hard way yesterday about the evils of Starbucks, I have pre-journalled my day.

I've yet to add snacks: an apple & carrots.

And I still have 8 points left to play with. Crack hummus and peanut butter will take care of those leftovers quite nicely, methinks!

Poor, Poor, Mr. Garmin

I didn't get around to registering him when I bought him. "I'll do it later" I said to myself. Well, two years later, this morning "later" arrived. I went to register him to download all of my data instead of manually transferring it into a spreadsheet I built myself. I know, I know, I made things way more difficult than they needed to be.

So I figured out that the plug in actually hides the USB and hooked it up to the laptop. And then went to find the Serial Number. "On the back of the unit" the website helpfully says. Except if it was there, it has worn off. Nary a number or a letter (let alone 8 or 9) to be found.

*sigh*

I either delete all the data I've yet to transfer or take it somewhere to see if someone else's eyes see what mine don't.

That'll teach me for procrastinating!

Points Plus--Day One

I like the idea: eat whole, unprocessed foods. Fruits and veg are pointless. Measure. Move more.

I dislike:
-that I had to buy an effing calculator (the slider is no more) so you have to track online or use their calculator. Pen and paper seems to be going buh-bye...

-that the meeting I attended seem woefully under-prepared and was staffed with rude people (oh wait, that always happens at that location). AND I wasn't the only one who noticed, which means I wasn't just being a grumpy pants!

All in all, I like it. I signed up for the e-tools trial and I'll probably stick with online since meetings in this city don't work for me (times and locations are never right with my wacky schedule).

And my yoga class tonight was wonderful! I heart teaching!

Catch up time!

Wow, this week has flown by!

My schedule has been full: of people, places and things, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Except maybe warmer. I'm not ready for the cold, hard reality of winter in Canada yet! Four more sleeps and I'll be in a tropical paradise, though!

So, what's been going on?

Well, work has consumed more than it's usual share of hours (apparently I must 'make up' my share of the evening and weekend shifts that I'll be missing while I'm on holidays). This pay period has me working two extra shifts. No wonder I'm exhausted!

Then there's been some family stuff what with Grandpa dying and all. I've spent some great time with my mom as we've been navigating our way through her family's dynamics. Interesting stuff, lemme tell ya!

Add to that a run (not enough), some yoga (teaching and practicing, again, not enough of either!) and some time with friends and a Christmas, I mean Winter Holiday Party and I've used up most of my waking hours this week!

My list of things to do for tomorrow and Tuesday morning is growing at an exponential rate! I am going to go downtown to the WW meeting and check out this new program everyone keeps talking about. I'll try anything once!

I've also got to plan tomorrow night's yoga class. We're upping the time from an hour to 90 minutes. There are some ideas swirling around in my mind (and captured on my crack-berry) but I need to formulate something a little more concrete.

Whew! Now, look at the time! Must hit the hay.