I'm not dead!!!!

So....where did I disappear to?  Nowhere really.  I just got busy with life and wasn't doing anything worthwhile around the house to make this little house/DIY blog seem interesting.  My life has seemed rather dull to me and I don't think I'm THAT funny so yeah.  I just never got around to updating anything and here we are, 582 days later, with a brand new update!

In those 582 days, I've run two half marathons, gained an indecent amount of weight despite all that running, stopped and started a bunch of little projects around the house and in my life, and just generally putzed around.  I've painted and re-painted rooms.  I've installed a new faucet and a new garbage disposal.  I've injured myself doing silly things.  I've read a lot of books, watched a lot of movies, gotten rid of cable, become very good at napping, and continue to really suck at cooking.

If you're reading this, you're probably wondering, why the heck are you back?  It's all Salt's fault.  As in, the famous Salt from Run Salt Run, whom I've been following online for quite some time.  Turns out, we even lived in the same apartment complex back in Baltimore, MD for a number of years and never even knew it!  So sometimes I get a little stalker-y on her posts......but thankfully she doesn't hate me for it!  Anywho, Salt aka Lauren, is a really awesome lady, and reading her posts for the past year or so have finally caught up with me.  I've finally been inspired to write about something.  And that something is.....if you haven't figured this out yet just wait for it....RUNNING!

Yes, running.  That sport that sometimes makes you go "what's wrong with that person?!"  I ran two half-marathons in 2013, the Capital City half marathon in May and the Columbus Nationwide Children's Hospital half marathon in October.  Between the two, I enjoyed the Nationwide race a lot more.  I felt it was better organized, I enjoyed the expo so much I went twice, and I really preferred the route and the amount of people I saw out there supporting us crazy runners.  At the Cap City, my time was terrible.  I didn't really prepare that much and just kind of winged it (such a bad bad BAD idea), finishing in a little over three hours.  But hey, I finished it, right?  Wrong.  I was mad at myself for my performance and convinced my mom to pay for my entry into the race in October.  I promised myself I would genuinely train this time around, and I did.....for about six weeks, off and on.  I think my longest run was 5 miles.  Again, BAD idea but this time I was a little more physically fit overall so it wasn't as bad.  Still bad of course.  So even though I shaved 15+ minutes off my finish time, I was still mad at myself.  I KNEW I could run faster than 13:58/mile because when I did actually train, I was running 12-minute miles.  I sat down and thought long and hard about where I'd gone wrong (besides not actually, you know, training).  I realized that my pacing sucked.  I was starting out much too slow and staying too slow.  My form sucked.  My breathing was all wrong.  If I was going to do it again, I was going to do it right.

I started working on my general overall fitness a few weeks later.  I compared the Cap City and the Nationwide runs and decided that I'd prefer to wait for the Nationwide for all the reasons listed above.  I dragged out signing up and waited until the race was at full price AND less than 500 spots available, but I signed up!  I had been training for a couple weeks at that point, so might as well sign up, right?  Sure! 

Well.....then I got horribly sick for two solid weeks.  I couldn't even walk up the stairs to my bedroom without nearly passing out.  So no gym, no running, NOTHING for two weeks.  UGH.  I wanted to crawl under a rock.  The good news is, I got back on track at the tail end of week five of my training plan.  If you're going to miss out on your training for an extended period of time, do it towards the beginning!!!  Sure, my body hated me on that first long run of four miles after two full weeks of no physical activity at all, but I've done worse (obviously) and didn't die.

This means now, you shall be blessed with multiple posts each week, detailing my running adventures, along with whatever else I feel like sharing.  So enjoy!  And hello to any new people!

PS - New blog title ideas are much appreciated :)

Staycation

One of my absolute favorite blogs is 'Sota Is Sexy.  Katrina is hilarious and always keeps me entertained.  A few weeks ago I won a giveaway for an adorable state charm necklace, and of course, I chose Maryland.  I may officially be from Ohio now, but Maryland will always be my first home.  Anyway, we're Facebook friends now, and I noticed last week that Katrina was looking for guest bloggers.  I offered to write a post, and it'll be up on her blog this Friday!  Trust me, there will be a link to that post.  I wrote it from Chloe's perspective too.  Should be amusing!

I've officially been Ohio now for a little over two years.  Kind of hard to believe....I've been so used to moving frequently that it's a shock to the system to be in one place for an extended period of time.  I still don't get excited over OSU football, and I still get amusement out of how vanilla this town is.  Thankfully I've discovered some new things to do and see out here.  I do wish I had a few more girl friends, since I'm still pretty new out here, but I suppose I'll get there eventually.

This week is Staycation 2012.  The original plan was to go to Cape Cod for the week and see the Falmouth Road Race, but gas is expensive and flights aren't cheap either.  Monday I did basically nothing, Tuesday I took a ton of stuff to the Goodwill store and did some shopping, and today?  Today will probably be pretty low-key too.  Volleyball is tonight, so I'll probably go to Flannagan's early for some relaxing by the pool before the game.  I've been enjoying the break from work, but I am itching to check my work email!

Normalcy

I think I'm going to try a personal little challenge.  Rather than this blog being solely about the trials and tribulations of first-time homeownership, I think perhaps I'll write about some personal stuff too.  Maybe?  Anyone?  Bueller?

Let's see....had my wisdom teeth out two weeks ago.  It was awful.  I survived off smoothies, pudding, and Jello for about 10 days.  I did a serious happy dance when I finally got to eat a Wendy's Spicy Chicken Sandwich on Friday night.  So what if I've had two more since then?  IT'S WORTH IT!!!

Chloe survived her own surgery.  The vet is extremely pleased with how the paw looks, and I'm extremely pleased with how quickly Chloe returned to her normal crazy Min Pin self.

The heat wave we've been experiencing has been excruciating.  Thankfully it hasn't been too humid (at least, not by my standards of humid).  And during last week's storm, my house only sustained minor damage and I wasn't without power for too long.  Kudos to Home Depot on Trueman Blvd for allowing Chloe to come along with me on Saturday morning!  The only damage to the house was the loss of a few roof peak shingles, some siding was pulled off (and landed in my neighbors' yard), and a gutter was pulled away from the roof on one end.  Now if only the guy my realtor recommended to fix everything would be able to come out today or tomorrow to look over everything and give me a repair quote!

I seriously thought I posted this last week!  Ooops!

Ah crap

I did not intentionally disappear for nearly two months.  I've been a busy bee!  Holidays, social life, work-life changes, etc. have all kept me constantly running since I last posted.

Sadly there haven't really been any changes with the house.  I've purchased gray paint for the bathroom, so the warning of "Oh yeah, the bathroom is REALLY bright" will be a distant memory sometime in the near future!  My friend Steve, as a Christmas gift to me, will be painting the wall against the stairs and the upstairs landing to match the living room.  I'm really looking forward to that!  He's going to try to get it done for me next week before my parents come to town for Christmas, so we will have to wait and see what truly happens.

I'm really looking forward to the holiday this year.  Well, for now.  Having Chloe be absolutely exhausted will be nice, plus I get to see my parents and have some delicious food prepared for me!  I think mostly I'm just excited about the days off, especially Thursday of next week.  Why?  I'll probably get my hair done, go to Skully's for Ladies 80s, and maaaaaaybe go see The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.

Since my blog is a bit boring right now, I suggest you go check out Little Crazy Home.  My friend Linda just started this, and she's truly had the time and commitment (and cashola) to get a LOT done!  I'm particularly impressed with the bedroom and octopus bathroom.