I rode a bike yesterday for the first time in... oh... maybe 12 years? Maybe even more? I used to ride bikes all the time as a kid in our housing development, but there were far fewer cars on the road then... plus those roads are a bit wider than the ones around my neighborhood now. So, it was a little terrifying as I tried to remember how to use a hand brake on a 10-speed bike while going down a hill, headed towards a stop sign. Also, I don't remember bikes being as wobbly as they are. Not that I fell over or anything, but sometimes going over manhole covers and speed humps were a little tricky. Oh yeah, and helmets... that's new since I last rode a bike.

We didn't go around too far yesterday... just a couple loops through the neighborhood. It's hard to go too far without having to deal with actual traffic, which is something I'm not all that interested in. Dealing with a moving car or two here and there, okay. Dealing with actual flowing traffic, not so much. But I'm excited to check out the bike trails this weekend, assuming the weather holds up. I think crashing into moving bicyclists might be less painful than crashing into moving cars, so maybe I can relax a bit and get my bike legs back.

I just finished my very first 10K. My time was 67:59, which is a full 12 minutes faster than my goal. I have never run that far outside before and there are two major hills, which pretty much everyone, including me walked up. Yet, somehow I finished the race with an overall 11 minute mile pace. We actually did the first 5K in almost 30 minutes flat, which is faster than I've ever run a 5K before. I'm pretty much in shock. The entire time I kept telling TS his watch was just wrong, or that we underestimated how late we were in starting the watch. But no, the official clock confirmed it. Best race of my life. :-) (Not that there are a whole lot to compare them to, but still.)

I'm officially exhausted. Even my hands are having trouble typing this, I'm so tired.

Gazpacho can be really yummy, but after a while, it starts to feel like you are just spooning salsa into your mouth. Which isn't necessarily awful, but I could really use some tortilla chips right now. Also, my breath currently reeks of garlic. No worries about being bit by a vampire here.

I wish I was better at keeping my apartment clean. The thing is, and I will freely admit it, I am lazy. Now it's not like I am living in complete filth. Just... with some dust bunnies. And a kitchen floor that hasn't been cleaned in, well, a couple of months. (Don't worry, I don't eat anything I drop on the floor, and I keep the counters clean. Usually.) And two half-unpacked suitcases from trips made in February (hey, it's not like I need bathing suits and swim towels yet here) and this past weekend. And my bathroom probably could use a vacuuming to pick up all the hair I shed when I brush it. But I'm lazy. Unless I have a completely free weekend, I don't usually set aside time to clean. And my completely free weekends are usually when TS is out of town, which was last in January. Which is the last time my apartment got a good scrub down.**

I don't think it's gross. Well, sometimes, if I look too closely, it's a little gross. But I don't think someone who came in would think it was disgusting and uninhabitable. Mostly, I just need to put things away and then give everything a once-over with some soap and water. And I want to... I think all the time, "Ugh, I really need to clean," and then I crash on the couch and turn on the Food Network or something. Pure laziness.

It bugs me though, because I feel like I'm "not a grown-up." Oddly, my friend said the same thing last weekend. I was up visiting her and her husband, in their very clean and very adult (not in a porn way, just put-together and all) apartment, and she was commenting about how all her co-workers had a cleaning service, but she just can't justify getting one. I looked around her apartment and said I thought they were doing a pretty good job on their own, but she informed me that it only looked like that because I was coming, and guests are pretty much the only incentive to clean. Pretty much my exact philosophy. But then she uttered the same words I do at least once a week -- "I wish I lived like a grown up." We both have parents who, despite chasing after children and working or going to school, kept a very clean home. Why can't we do it? We don't even have kids to clean up after... it's us who are making the mess.

I keep telling myself that if I just do it once, then it'll be so much easier to stick to some sort of cleaning schedule and keep things looking nice. But it's getting around to actually doing it that one time that is complicating things.

** Think not cleaning my house since January is bad? I haven't gotten my car washed once, since I've owned it. Which has been, um, three years. Hey, it's silver, hides dirt well, and the rain seems to be doing a good enough job. And I think the time it got fixed after the tree fell on it, the shop washed it. But I've been having to park it under trees lately, so I might have to break my three-year streak. Probably wouldn't hurt to finally take out the orange fur trimmed witch's hat that's been sitting in my trunk for two years either.

I totally heart boxing. We've been going twice a week (or try to anyway) for about two months now, and there is definitely a big difference in my arms. I love it. I hadn't done much weight training lately, so I've gone back to that over the past couple of weeks and I've actually gotten stronger than when I had stopped. My arms still look kinda big when I'm not flexing, but at least I know it's b/c there's muscle under there. :-) Well, a little layer of chub on top too, but I'm working on that. But I've actually been called out for being buff, so yay!

I'm running a 10K in a week and a half. The longest race I've done before is a 5K, but I've worked up to the occasional 6 mile run, which is .2 short of a 10K. I just jumped onto a 10K plan about two and a half weeks ago (which is what triggered the return to weight lifting), and I can keep up with it so I think I can at least finish. I'm not looking to break any records, obviously, but I'm thinking of trying to maintain a 12-13 minute pace through the whole thing and finish in about 75 minutes. I've done 6 miles in 70 minutes on the treadmill, but that was at zero incline and obviously that's not how it works running outside. The first half of the course is fast with a lot of downhill, but that means the second half must be slow with a lot of uphill. Ugh. I've been working on running outside though and making sure I'm training at least at a .5 incline on the treadmill, which is a better simulator of running on the road. I won't be too disappointed if I don't make my goal though... I just want to run more than I walk, I think. Next time, I'll try to just improve my time.

I think once my 10K training is over, I might try to add a yoga class in once a week. I love to do yoga, but I always sort of feel like it takes away from my cardio and weight training. Currently, I'm boxing twice a week, doing weight training twice a week, running short distance(2-3 miles) twice a week, and doing a long run (4+ miles) once a week. (One of the short distance days coincides with weight training, so I still get a rest day.) I'll have to see how the gym's yoga classes fit into my schedule, but I'll probably double it up with one of the other workouts, rather than eliminating a run altogether. But then, once it gets nice out for good, I'll also probably add in some tennis and biking (assuming I ever fix my bike) to mix it up a bit. It's kinda crazy to think there are too many workouts I want to do that I can't fit it all in. Who would have ever thought I'd say that?

Yeah, so... I went shopping after work yesterday and bought three shirts. Two are work appropriate (well, one of them probably requires a cardigan, but works), and one is straight up summery:

Shirt One -- I'm actually wearing this to work right now with a black pencil skirt and heels. I personally think it looks better on me than the model. I like that it is kinda flowy, but still cut in a way that doesn't make me completely shapeless. Also looks great with black pants and jeans.

Shirt Two -- This is the summer shirt that is not going to be work appropriate, but is still super cute and I think I'll be able to get a lot of use out of it for the summer. It looks cute with these kinda longish navy shorts (but not quite bermudas) that I have that I was having trouble finding anything to go with. But also pretty good just with jeans.

Shirt Three -- This one has work appropriateness potential, especially if I wear it with the right skirt and a cardigan. You can't see it too well in the photo, but it has a little tie sash at the empire waist. Both this one and the previous one show off my boxing muscles. :-) I'm totally loving the neckline on this one.

I really like that all three of these shirts are a little bit longer. Not quite tunic length, but also far enough down my hips that I don't have to constantly tug on them. Plus, they aren't super form-fitting, and they somehow accentuate my good features (collarbone, shoulders), while hiding my tummy (which also means that they are good to wear when you're going to be eating too much food at dinner!). I gave TS a little fashion show last night before I ripped the tags off to make sure they looked good on me and they all got rave reviews. And yes, he actually tells me honestly when something doesn't look good, which I really appreciate... even if I disagree and wear it anyway. ;-)

Yay! So excited! I think my personal shopping is done for a while now that I feel like I've made some really great purchases. Plus now I can break out of my usual "uniform" I mentioned yesterday.

I've gotten a bit of a shopping bug lately. I'm usually pretty good about not buying things just to shop (although I do like to look!), but for some reason whenever I have to start buying things for other people or have necessities to buy for myself, it sort of triggers the desire to shop more, more, more. Luckily, I'm pretty much a cheapskate, so I don't buy lots of impractical things, or the latest gadgets or fashions. But over the past few weeks, I've had to buy a new pair of work shoes (eBay!), birthday presents for TS (including a total steal on some slightly used boxing gloves and mitts, which I've already given to him b/c a former member of our class was selling them so I couldn't get around TS knowing in advance, or else he would have bought them himself), and some new jeans since my old ones ripped... and pretty much right in the crotch which is not acceptable. Actually, three new pairs of jeans, and here's why...

I bought an "emergency" pair on sale at Express (with a gift card) the day my old pair ripped, but they are way too wide-legged for my preference. My old pair had been Express, but either they make all different styles and cuts now, or (more likely) my body has morphed into a new shape, so none of them really fit me except this one pair. I have a feeling my workouts are somewhat working against me... my thighs are a bit more, um, full than they had been a year or so ago, but I think a lot of that is muscle. Unfortunately, this makes my waist-to-thigh apparently completely unique, as not a single pair in Express, which had been my jeans standby for about 5 years, fit me properly. So for my emergency pair, I ended up buying a size up, meaning they are kinda huge in the waist, but actually fit over my thighs without making my legs look like sausages.

Then the following weekend, I went to the mall and tried on just about every pair I could find... even ones that were in the $150 range I was so desperate. Nada. Same exact problem -- either it fit me in the waist, but were too slim in the thighs, or they fit over my thighs and left a three inch gap in the waist.

Seriously, what the heck? Aren't women supposed to be curvy?! Why aren't there any jeans made for women who aren't completely straight from the waist down? (Oh, and any jeans labeled "curvy," I had that same problem with, so I don't know what that label is all about.)

Anyway, I was getting desperate. My too baggy jeans are fine for lounging around the house or running errands, but I'm kinda swimming in them, so they aren't exactly the most flattering pair should I want to go out on the town. Which, I plan to do this weekend in NYC. So I was desperate to find something.

I decided to hit up Old Navy after work on Monday. There are two of them that are each about a 15-20 minute drive away, but neither are in a mall. I figured I had this older pair from ON that kinda fit... it was my usual size, but a little tight in the thighs (again!), but probably somewhat from their most recent washing. But they were still too tight for me to feel comfortable in them... I'm not all about rocking the 80s spandex look in jeans. So, off to ON #1 I went.

I tried on every pair in the store, in two sizes. Well, every pair that was not high-waisted, skinny jeans (although I tried one pair on accidentally, and if you are top heavy in the legs, let me assure you it is NOT a flattering look), or a wash I didn't like. Still, it was something like 12 pairs of jeans. Sometimes I tried them on more than once for comparison. I found one pair I liked. ONE. So I bought it. Sure, it's a size up so it's still a little big in the waist, but not as much as so many others I tried on. Plus, the cut was actually flattering for my larger thighs, with a little flare on the bottom to even things out. But, they only had one wash in my size and it wasn't quite as dark as I like for going out. So I drove to ON#2 to see if they had the my size in a darker wash, which they did. Two pairs of wearable-in-public jeans for $60. Sure, it's a little disappointing to go UP a size as a result of working out for 7 months and eating a healthier diet... I mean, my goal had been to go back DOWN a size after all. But I'm blaming the jeans making industry for that one, as obviously my waist hasn't gone up.

Wow, okay, that went totally off-topic. My point was... I've been spending more money than usual lately. Shoes, gifts, jeans. And now I want more! I want to get a cute pair of flats for going out (I'm considering making a Target run for that later), and a cute top or two for going out. All my clothes fall into "work" (which is frankly sort of dull) or "casual" (which is a little too casual for going out for dinner/drinks). I need some double-duty work/going-out shirts... or even a few cute single-duty going-out shirts that won't break the bank. But I don't really need them. I just want them. A lot. So I might do some more shopping for myself. Is that wrong? Do you want to talk me out of it? Or send me a link to a cute, very reasonably priced shirt that I can go buy today? Thanks.

My laptop is dead. Okay, not so much dead, but kind of comatose. I apparently have some sort of virus that prevents me from accessing the internet (or at least makes my access so slooooooooow that it effectively prevents access), so I'm going to have to back up everything that I really want/need from off of there and then reinstall everything. And considering that my laptop is literally falling apart after surviving three years of being trekked back and forth to law school, several plane trips, and being moved a couple of times, I think it's probably time for a new one. Better to plan for that now before this one totally craps out and I can't even get anything I've got on there. So, this weekend I will be performing emergency surgery on the laptop, extracting all the stuff I need, and then just putting it on life support until I can save up money for a new one... hopefully in a month or so.

Figures, right? I pay off my credit card and immediately need to buy a new computer. Argh.

Things got kinda hectic at work yesterday afternoon and there was a lot of running back and forth from my office to the printer across the hall. At one point, I had my reading glasses on. Now, I'm not sure why I decided that I needed to take them off before picking up the document I just printed out, but as I got just past my desk I stopped, took off my glasses, and tossed them on my desk. I turned to rush back out the door as they were landing on my desk and I heard it. I heard my lens pop out of the frame and fall... somewhere. My lenses don't fit perfectly into the frames, so that wasn't a big deal... I usually have to pop it back in once or twice a week. So I went and picked up my copy, then came back and searched the floor. Hands and knees. Nothing. I searched my desk. I shook out papers and folders. Nothing. I searched my clothes. Nothing. I searched my bag that sits behind my desk. Nothing. I searched the trash can. Nothing. I searched all those things once more. Still nothing. The files and folders sitting on the bookshelf three feet away. Nothing. The TOP of that bookshelf, six feet up. Nothing.

I have no idea how I did it, but I made my lens disappear into thin air.

So, today after work, I get to go downtown and pick out a new pair of reading glasses.