2015 in Review: Focus on the Positive

Well, I'm just going to come out and say that I'm not really sorry to see 2015 go. It was not the worst year of my life, but it was definitely up there in terms of crappiness. There were workplace issues (that I won't go into here) and budget issues that made the workplace issues even more challenging. There were health issues for both a beloved family member and for me. I didn't run much in the winter or spring so it was a pretty low mileage year for me. In the early summer, a week or two I submitted my book manuscript to the academic press with which I hoped to publish, I was on the phone with my best friend and pretty much broke down and wept tears of exhaustion, bitterness, anger, and sorrow. Because the first part of the year had been so hard, I had put all of my energy into finishing the book manuscript in order to cope. That meant I had been avoiding a lot of emotional discomfort, but it also meant that I had been working almost nonstop. I couldn't articulate a single goal or dream that wasn't career related. I felt like an automaton.

Since then I've been slowly digging out of that hole with a lot of help, but it's hard. There are still many low moments, when I'm reminded of exactly why the first part of the year was so challenging. Yet, I am resilient. I have some level of agency in all of this. I can make choices. And the year hasn't been all bad. Even during those dark times, there were many good things happened that buoyed my spirits and kept me moving forward. Here is a recap of some of them.

In January I took a trip to New York City to go to a conference. The highlights included meeting with several editors for presses and seeing some dear friends from graduate school. Later in the month Mark and I celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary.

In February I worked alongside some great students at a community service project. We celebrated Mark's birthday.

March brought the returning light to my northern abode. It also brought a fabulous spring break trip to visit friends in Florida. ANC friends helped me celebrate my birthday with a cupcakes and cocktail party at my house. I also directed an undergraduate research conference, which was an amazing academic experience for all involved.

In April I really returned to running. I ran a fun 5K with a couple of frolleagues (friends + colleagues). I tapped a birch tree for the first time and went on a sea life watching excursion with a couple of girlfriends.

May brought the end of the spring semester and with it more flexibility in my schedule. I turned my focus to finishing my book manuscript, but Mark and I were able to squeeze in some nice hikes, bike rides, and brunches.

During the first part of the month of June, I was completely focused on finishing the book. When I submitted, I didn't immediately get a bit of a break because I had previously committed to attend two back-to-back conferences in the Midwest. Although I don't recommend that and it was rather stressful, I love conferencing. I got to see a number of friends, talk intensely about research and approaches, and get good feedback on my new(ish -- I think I can still kind of call it new) side project. I also roomed with a copanelist at one of the conferences, and we got on like a house on fire and continue to be in touch about fun books and running as well as academic stuff, which was an unexpected but delightful boon. After the conferences I was able to tag on a visit to see my family for a week.

July allowed me to downshift a bit. We went on more hikes and bike rides. I read a lot of novels and bought an adult coloring book and a box of crayons. I went to a weekly yoga class with a couple of girlfriends. Mark and I also went sea kayaking, which was amazing!

In August we visited Mark's family for a few days in Toronto and at a cottage on a lake in the Ontario countryside, where my oldest niece learned to canoe and play card games that I have never mastered. My sister gave birth to a third baby girl! After our return, my dear friend Lizzie came to visit for a few days. The fall semester started, and the nerd in me couldn't help but fall for the promise of a new academic year. August brought me a lot of really great moments. Without a doubt, the best professional moment was hearing from my editor that my book had been recommended for publication.

September was a pretty quiet month, but it brought a 10K PR. I also drew up my plan for tackling the revisions for my book manuscript.

In October, I ran a half marathon. It wasn't a PR, but I achieved my time goal for the race and took several minutes off my time from this race back in 2012. Toward the end of the month I went to a conference in Vancouver. Although I didn't get to spend much time outside of the conference hotel, it's such a great city! I ate well. I saw friends. I talked about the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

November was pretty hectic, as I worked to finish manuscript revisions and grade my way through many piles of papers. I did the gratitude project which really helped my emotional and mental state at a dark and stressful time of the year. I also started running with a new friend here.

In December, I hosted a fun cookie party for the student organization I advise. Mark and I had a Chanukah Dinner Party featuring his delicious latkes. I watched some of my students graduate. I finished my book revisions and sent off my manuscript. Finally, we hopped on a plane and spent Christmas with my family. I got to meet my new niece and play pony castle and hide and seek, color, and read (and reread) books with my other two nieces on that side of the family.

In my previous post, I talked about making a more conscious effort to shift perspective and cultivate gratitude and happiness. So while I'm relieved to see 2015 go, I will also acknowledge that this year provided me with many beautiful moments and a number of opportunities for growth. I'm still working to overcome some of its challenges, but I'm thankful to have the chance.

What was your greatest challenge of 2015? What was one of your happiest moments of this past year? Happy New Year!

Spring Half-Marathon Plans: SLC Half-Marathon

snuggling with my new niece

I got back to my mountain fortress early yesterday morning after a great conference and a hellish day of travel from the east coast, which could have admittedly been much, much worse due to the Polar Vortex's mayhem-causing powers. I had a wonderful time in the lower 48 visiting family in Louisiana, which was wonderful and relaxing, and attending a conference in D.C., which was wonderful and exhausting. I was hoping to see more of D.C. and visit some museums and monuments while I was there, but I was so busy with meetings, presentations, and meet-ups with friends and colleagues that I saw nothing but the conference hotels.

Unfortunately, due to illness and travel, I have yet to go for a run in 2014, but I'm planning to do an easy run/walk a little bit later today to get back on track (hopefully without provoking a coughing attack). This first wog of the year will begin (again) operation rebuild the base for me, because I have registered for a half-marathon in April. Due to a serendipitous confluence of events, it looks like I will be able to combine a trip to give an invited lecture at a university in Utah with running the SLC half-marathon on April 19th. I'm really looking forward to both opportunities!

In a couple of weeks, when I have a few runs back under my belt and it's a little closer to the event itself, I'll pick a training plan for the race. Are you running any spring races? What do you do in the pre-training-schedule-periods of your running year? How's the start to your new year been? I hope my Midwestern friends and readers are all safe and warm!

Currently: November

I'm still trying to rediscover my blogging voice and carve out time for this little writing space, so I thought I would do a currently post.

Current Netflix/TV Obsession: For the past few weeks I've felt an emptiness as the world waits for more episodes of Orange of the New Black (so fracking good). In the meantime, we have been watching the series Whitechapel. However, some of my students told me that I should start watching the David Tennant Casanova ASAP.

Current Running Revelation: When you are trying to rebuild your fitness back from nothing, the most important thing is just trying to get back out there with some level of consistency. My goal for the month is to run at least 3 times each week and to add 5-10 minutes each week to at least one of those runs.

Current Weight Watchers' Progress: After losing about 10 pounds between March and June, I gained them back in July and August by not following the plan at all. In September and October, I lost and gained the same 3 pounds over and over again. This month I'm hitting reset. I joined an accountability group with some Friends and Friends of Friends on Facebook, and I'm committed to tracking everything.

Currently Looking Forward To: I'm really looking forward to seeing family over the holidays. I can't wait to meet my new niece, Lily, and to see the rest of my family!

Current Book: I'm currently reading Nada by Carmen Laforet in Spanish. I've also recently been reading some of the Dorothy Sayers Lord Peter Wimsey novels, which are a lot of fun. If you like Downton and/or Sherlock, I highly recommend these.

Current Drink: Coffee, coffee, and more coffee. It's that time of the semester. What can I say?

Current Excitement: Last week I welcomed a new niece to the world! It's pretty thrilling to be an aunty again.

Current Fashion Trend: I love that red, plaids, and houndstooth are in right now. I have quite a few pieces already in my closet, so it's nice to bust them out and feel on-trend.

Current Love: It's pretty dorky, but I'm really lovin' working on my book right now. I'm trying to spend at least 30 minutes most days on it for the rest of this semester since I have a couple of other projects that are still on my desk. I hope I can increase that in the spring, and I can't wait for the summer when I can devote most of my mental energies to it.

Current Food: Pumpkin! My friend has made me delicious pumpkin soups for lunch a couple of times in the past month, and I made a delicious pumpkin seed, parsley, and cilantro pesto the other night. And of course there is the clichéd but always delicious PSL.

Current Indulgence: Painting my nails. I don't always really have the time to do it, but I do it a few times a week anyway.

Currently Pondering: Article revisions and book manuscript revisions. Everywhere I look there are revisions to be done.

Current Mood: Responsible. This afternoon I have an appointment with my financial advisor. Tomorrow I have an appointment to (hopefully) get my treadmill repaired. I'm also setting a goal to make some other appointments that I should have quite some time ago, including an annual exam and a physical.

Current New Find: My happy lamp. After several friends recommended that I get one, I purchased a happy lamp a few weeks ago. Maybe it's placebo effect, but it does seem to be helping my mood and internal clock even as we start moving into the times of much darkness here.

Current Outfit: I'll show you.

Current Peeve: Maybe I'm mellowing in my old age, but I don't have any new peeves to add right now.

Current Song: Since Lou Reed's death, I've been revisiting a lot of my favorite Velvet Undergrounds tunes like "Beginning to See the Light" and "Pale Blue Eyes."

Current Triumph: Returning to yoga. I hadn't been to a class for about a month, and I made it to a nice Yin class last night with a couple of friends.

Current Wish-List: If my treadmill cannot be easily or relatively expensively fixed, a new one will top my wish-list. With the shrinking hours of light, it is just so much more convenient to get in weekday runs on the treadmill, and it's a challenge to fit the gym in more days of the week because of work and car-sharing.

Currently Delaying: Grading.

What are you currently up to? What's currently on your wish-list? What's currently exciting you?

This and That, Odds and Ends

I have decided to "downgrade" to the half marathon at Vancouver. While I felt like I had a pretty strong half in San Diego, I just didn't (and don't) feel physically or emotionally ready or in a state of near-readiness for a full marathon in less than 2 months and with the pace of the semester that didn't (and doesn't) seem likely to change. Instead I'll be targeting a sub 2:20 half marathon, which may be something of a challenge for me due to the hills. I've taken something of a reverse taper this week, but will be back with a new plan for the upcoming weeks soon.

I'm also excited that my spouse will be coming with me to Vancouver, and we'll get to spend some time playing tourist, too!

Since we are currently on Spring Break, I hosted a two day mini writing retreat. It was great for a couple of reasons: my house is a lot cleaner than it was earlier in the week and I have made substantial progress on an article manuscript. I'm hopeful that I'll have a complete draft by the end of next week and then can spend some time polishing. I aim to have it sent out to a journal before the end of the first week of April.

My birthday is coming up on Sunday, and I really want to buy myself a pair of adorable open toed booties. Then I look outside at the snow that is likely to be on the ground for another few weeks and think about the mud that is to follow. Living in Alaska is an amazing adventure -- just not for my fabulous shoe collection.... I'm ready for it to be spring, but until then I'll go tubing. Also I'll go back to San Diego here and there in my mind....

Earlier this week I received the happy news that my sister is pregnant with her second child. I'm thrilled that I'll be an auntie again in the fall!

What's new with you?

Vancouver Marathon Training: Week 4

For what it's worth, another week of running and training is in the books. As with last week, things didn't go quite according to plan, but I did manage to log most of the miles I was supposed to.

Winter blues and greys

Monday - scheduled yoga. Actual yoga. I just did a short 20 minute gentle flow podcast from Yoga Journal.  It was exactly what I needed after the end of what felt like a very long work day.

Tuesday - scheduled 4 miles easy. Actual 5 by the 5th Virtual 5K on the treadmill in 30:36. You can read more about it in its own post below.

Wednesday - scheduled timed mile. Actual rest. Since I ran fast (for me) the previous day, I decided to put off the timed mile for a few days.

Thursday - scheduled 3 miles easy. Actual 4 miles easy. I hopped on the treadmill to watch some Netflix and log a few easy miles. The pace averaged out to 10:55 min/miles.

Friday - scheduled 4 miles easy. Actual rest. I had some things to attend to for a couple of service obligations and it made for a strange day.

Saturday - scheduled belly dance. Actual 3 miles easy. I decided that I really didn't enjoy belly dance all that much. I'm sure it would have been good for my tight and inflexible shoulders and upper body, but I would much rather run, bike, or do yoga instead. So I gave myself permission. I headed out the door for a few miles on a stunningly beautiful winter day. It was icy and a bit windy in more exposed areas, but it was good for the soul. My average pace was 11:31. I followed it up with some push ups, crunches, and a short yoga session on my mat.

Sunday - scheduled 7 miles LSD. Actual 7 miles LSD on the treadmill at an average pace of 11:17. I felt physically okay, but this run was hard mentally and emotionally. I had received some troubling news from a loved one earlier that morning, and the first part of February has, since college, been an emotionally low time for me in general as it marks the anniversary of my father's passing. (Today is the actual calendar date.) I got through the run, but I'm not ashamed to admit that I spent an hour sobbing uncontrollably afterwards.

Total scheduled miles: 19.
Actual miles: 17.12.
Cross training workouts: 2.

I miss my father frequently but I feel it most terribly this time of year, but I'm so grateful that he instilled in me a love of learning, curiosity, intellectual integrity, the habit of keeping some sort of journal, a love of opera, football, Monty Python, and swearing, and even eventually an ability to accept that I am a giant dork and that's just fine. Thanks for indulging me, readers, with a bit of a descent into the maudlin here.

Favorite Photos: January to June

One of the goals that I set for 2012 was to work on becoming a better photographer. In order to work toward that goal, I started a 365 project in January, but found that I struggled with having an additional form of social media to have to which to post things and to comment on the work and posts of others. So at the end of April, I decided to reset the project and start posting my daily photos to a 365 blog here. During the summer I did a good job of consistently taking photos daily and uploading them to the blog, but I struggled a little bit with doing this once the semester got underway. I plan to continue the project until I reach 366 photos, and I'm trying to get back into the habit of snapping photos daily and posting them regularly this month. Even though I didn't always take daily photos and restarted the project in April, I did take a number of photos that I thought were interesting or meaningful to me, and I did get a bit more comfortable with my DSLR.

Here are my favorite photos from the first half of the year.

January: I took this photo with my DSLR right after midnight. Having just recently decided to take on a 365 challenge, I was really into trying to find ways to make every day kinds of subject a little more interesting. I also was exhibiting something of a newbie obsession with bokeh.

February: Going back through my photos, I really had a pretty limited selection of ones that I liked from that month. However, this one, that I took with my point-and-shoot while I was in Alaska interviewing for my current job and getting a tour of Turnagain Arm is one that doesn't make me feel ashamed of my photography skills or bored out of my mind. I like how the natural light gives it a vignette effect, albeit one that is not exactly centered.  

March: In March I traveled to San Antonio to see my sister, brother-in-law, and new niece, Isla. I took a number of photos that I really liked during that tripand, looking back through them, it was hard to choose a favorite. I ultimately settled on this one of the waterfall and bridge at the Japanese Tea Gardens.

April: My favorite photo from April is one that I took of my niece Norah, while we were in Toronto for Passover. She had a lot of fun playing her dad's shoes that evening, but I love this one in particular because of the look of concentration on her face.

May: I took this photo using the macro setting on my DSLR. It was a beautiful late spring day, and I spent part of it in the Royal Botanical Gardens in Madrid alternating between fiddling with my camera and taking photos of flowers and reading on a bench.

June: In June Mark and I did a bit of traveling -- we went to Alaska to look for a home and to Mount Rushmore and the Badlands. It was difficult to pick a favorite photo until I remembered this one that I took while we were exploring a beach near the place that would be our new home. I love everything about this photo: the guy, the stone skipping in the waves, the mountains and clouds in the background.

Have you ever done a photo challenge? If you've posted a favorite photo on your blog or on instagram, I'd love for you to link up in the comments!

Weekend Away: Toronto

This past weekend, M. and I flew to Toronto for the first two nights of Passover. We had 48 hours with his family before we had to head back to the airport and fly home. We hung out with our niece as much as possible (hard to believe how much she's grown in the past 9 months!) and ate some massive quantities of food at the seders we attended. It was really great to spend time with my spouse's family and to do a little walking around one of my favorite North American cities.

On Saturday, I got in a run in a 6 mile run in the morning. I ran from my in-laws to a nearby cemetery and did a few miles in there before heading back. It was a bright and crisp morning, and I saw lots of other runners out doing their thing. During the afternoon, we spent some time down in the Distillery District. I had a beer at the Mill Street Brewery, a coffee at Balzac, and picked up some Easter chocolate at Soma. It was a little surreal to be back in the Distillery District with my spouse's sister, her husband, and their kid because the last time we were there was for the jack & jill social that they had the night before their wedding almost three years ago.

My older niblet. She, too, likes to run!

We returned home Sunday afternoon to class prep and stacks of grading, but it was so nice to take a little holiday in Toronto. I feel like I was able to recharge my batteries over the weekend and now am ready to tackle the last weeks of the term.

Did you do anything special to celebrate Pesach or Easter this past weekend?

Year in Review: Wrapping up Running in 2011

As 2011 approached I set several running goals; they were to run my second marathon, run 800 miles this year, and to run faster. How did I do with these goals? Pretty well, actually. I ran my second marathon in June. I got a 5k PR and a marathon PR this year, and I ran my second and third fastest half-marathon times. I came close to 800 miles, but my injury set me back on this one. I'm currently sitting at 765 miles, and when I mentioned that to a friend she suggested that I just add some miles to December. I thought about it, but training smart and increasing my mileage gradually so that I avoid injury after low mileage months in September, October, and November are more important to me than hitting 800 miles. If I meet my goal of 50 miles in December, I should end the year with about 780 miles. I will count that as a win.

This year I ran a 5K, a 5 mile race, two 10Ks, a 10 mile race, 3 half-marathons, and a full marathon. I ran countless training runs. I ran in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Ohio, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Washington, Texas, and Ontario. My favorite race was the half-marathon that I ran with my friend Suzie in Madison. My favorite training run was a group run along the river trail in my town on an early summer morning with the moon in the sky and the sun rising.

For the next week I'll be running in Louisiana, where I am spending Christmas with my mom. I went out this morning for a 3 mile loop around her neighborhood and was delighted to see that many of the trees were still sporting gorgeous flaming leaves. It was a bit on the humid side, but it was 45F, so I definitely can't complain that fall starts late and lingers here.

Yet, Christmas is only a few days away in spite of the indications that it is autumn. I spotted some festive Christmas decorations around her neighborhood. I took photos of my two favorites (for lack of a better word). . . .

I'm looking forward to running many more miles in hopefully some new places in 2012 but for now I'm enjoying closing out the year with easy runs, time with family, and some work here and there. Was 2011 a year of PRs and new racing experiences for you? Did you have a mileage goal for the year? Will you meet it?

Apple Picking With the In-Laws

M's parents were in town this week, and we decided to go a nearby orchard for some apple picking. I was happy when M. mentioned to me that it was something that they wanted to do because I had hoped to go apple picking last fall but we never got around to it. So Friday we drove up to a local orchard. Upon our arrival, we sampled a number of the different types of apples that were ready for the picking and decided that we would go for the Cortlands. I'm glad that we did because the ones that we picked are delicious - juicy and crisp.

We hopped a tractor ride out to the appropriate part of the orchard, and then spent some time filling up our bag and eating some of our apple-y plunder.

After we had picked our peck and eaten our apples, we meandered through a corn maize (something I hadn't done since I was a kid) and enjoyed the chilly air and the sunshine. It was a wonderful way to spend part of an afternoon.

My in-laws took a few apples with them when they left on Saturday. But we still have plenty to take in our lunches over the next week, and I sense an apple crisp or a pie will be in my baking future.

Have you ever been apple picking? What are some of your favorite autumnal outdoor activities?

Travels: Weekend Adventures in Toronto

I spent this weekend with my husband and his family in Toronto.  We flew to Buffalo on Friday and M's parents drove down to do some shopping and to pick us up from the airport.  We had dinner in Buffalo and then made the drive back to Toronto, where we were dropped off at M's sister's place.

Saturday morning we woke up earlier than we had planned, since my brother-in-law had accidentally locked the laundry room.  After a misadventure with attempting to take the hinges off the door and a failed attempt to break in using a steak knife, we gave up temporarily and got ready for the day.  M. and I spent some time playing with our niece and then we all went to the farmers' market at Wychwood Barns.  We got coffee from one of the many vendors and had some yummy lunch at the cafe, enjoyed some live music, and my brother-in-law picked up a meat order from a local farmer.

M. and Norah

Band at Wychwood Barns

Artscape

After our trip to the market, we headed back to the house so that niece Norah could go down for a nap and that I could change out of my jeans since I was broiling.  Then M. and I headed down to David Pecaut Square to hear some live music at the Luminato Festival.  We sat in the grass and had a lemonade and just spent a couple of hours enjoying the sunshine, the urban atmosphere, and the performance of Egyptian artists, Natacha Atlas and Minor Empire.  We had to head back before too long, though, to get changed for dinner out with M's parents and sister.  It was a joint birthday (M's mother and sister have birthdays coming up soon) and father's day celebration.  Because of Norah's early bed time, it was an early dinner.  Afterwards, we headed back to my sister-in-law's for dessert, more conversation, and a nightcap.

Minor Empire performing at Luminato

Enjoying a summery day in a fabulous city

Yesterday morning I got up early and squeezed in a little 3 mile run.  Then M. and I went for brunch, which as you may know is my favorite meal of the week.  I had a latte and a veggie omelette and M. had scrambled eggs and chorizo.  We came back and hung out some more and watched Norah take a little bike ride around the block to test out the new seat and helmet for her.  Later in the afternoon we all attended the 50th wedding anniversary party of M's aunt and uncle.  It was a great time and wonderful to catch up with family and enjoy the antics of the younger generation.

Baby on board!

50 years together!

My sister-in-law, mother-in-law and I all ended up in surprisingly coordinating outfits

Balloons galore

How was your weekend?  Did you do anything to celebrate Father's Day?  Any races or spectacular meals.  

My New Toy

My birthday is coming up in a couple weeks.  Since M. has to be out of town for it for an academic workshop that he's been invited to participate in putting on and since I was headed out on the road again, he bought me an early birthday present on Saturday.

Source

I've been wanting a Kindle for months!  First downloads: The Complete Works of L.M. Montgomery, Gargantua and Pantagruel, Don Quixote, and The Decameron.

I'm at my mom's house in Louisiana for the week.  The good news is that she finally had a follow up appointment with a specialist and he believes that surgery can be avoided.  The plan is to treat her lower back problems with a series of injections over the next couple of months.  In the meantime, though, she's still in pain and is not supposed to lift much of anything, and I thought that since I'm on "spring break" I could help her out around the house.  My plan is to do a bit of cleaning, get some work done on a publication project, and grade a mountain of midterms while my mom is at work during the day.  Then I'll make dinner and we can hang out together in the evenings.

But with the light on my kindle cover I may have come up against an unanticipated snag: the temptation to continue reading late into the night while bundled up in bed.  Between my mom catching me doing that last night and the fact that I'm reading Anne of Green Gables, I feel like I'm about 10 years old again....  

Do you have a Kindle?  What are you currently reading for pleasure?