Still looking for a race?

I never thought I would be a runner. Seriously.
Not once, did I envision planning travel around races or traveling to cities to do a race. Funny, how time changes everything.
2010 presented ample opportunities for destination travel or tackling a later race to enjoy a summer/fall training season. I considered the Phoenix Marathon--January 2011, or Las Vegas and opted for Vegas. The food factor, alone, enticed me. Phoenix will be a possibility dependent on how I feel post-marathon. I used to live in Tempe and so I have friends, food options and a fondness for the city. Not to live there, again, but to visit or vacation. I have many close friends there.
I support destination races. If I had not signed up for the Healdsburg Half (October 30th), I think I would have considered the New York Marathon. Who wouldn't want to run there? I mean, it's New York. Talk about a spectator supported race. Food, Central Park, music, recruiting spectators to join you on your 1/2 or full marathon. I could go on and on.
I bring it up, today, since the Fresh Air Fund is again, looking for support. They need runners to run for them, sponsors, host families. Check it out---http://freshair.org/racers. Last year, they raised $400,000. Help them surpass that amount. They need it and it feels amazing to give back to the community. Or, if you run, sign up and give your support that way.
For me, a New York run will be at a later date. Still, definitely in my future....

Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate

The most amazing chocolate cake---EVER.....Thank you Elway's.

Typically, I prefer carrot cake, but since it was Brian's birthday I ate chocolate. I knew that Shari and Tom would also be enjoying chocolate on 9/26. Her mother-in-law baked a cake for them to enjoy. Yes, it was chocolate.

Birthday

I had a fantastic time celebrating my birthday.
Bryn and I celebrated Brian's birthday by going to dinner and reminiscing stories of Brian. It definitely was an incredible lead in to this year's celebration. And, she gave me sunflowers. I love sunflowers.
Afterwards, I convinced Sara Jo to drink wine at Elway's.
People always ask me--what do you want to do for your birthday?
I say--Drink wine.
Where?
But, of course....Elway's.
Since I had plans with a few friends, tonight, and knew that I wouldn't be going to my Plan A choice of all choices, I wanted to get my fix on Brian's birthday.
We did and it was awesome. Slow night and so we had attentive friends waiting on us and ample wine. Lately, I have preferred the Hess Cabernet to the Rapture. This still surprises me since I love the Rapture. Still, I drank Hess with Sara Jo and convinced her to eat a brownie with me. I promised Shari that I would have chocolate on Brian's birthday. We did and it was delightful! I will post a photo of said cake later.
Monday, we hiked at Matthew Winters Park to begin my day. The sky reminded me of Santa Fe and in all honesty, this hike is home to me. It is where Brian and I spent many days enjoying a hike. Well, I would hike and he biked to the summit and we would regroup and plan the rest of our day off or the next day if he had to return to work. Brian worked, too much, but always made time for an outdoor adventure.
Matthew Winters is a safe place to me and a place where I openly feel Brian's presence with me. I am glad that I opted to stay in Denver this year, for the birthdays. It felt right.....
I made reservations at The Avenue Bed & Breakfast at Manitou Springs for Monday night. Post hike, we returned to the house, showered, packed and headed to the DTC. I wanted to have a glass of wine at Shanahan's but they are not open for lunch. Eluded, again. I suppose I will have to check out Shanahan's another night.
We stopped at Great Northern Tavern for lunch. Great spot, bright, nice selection of liquors.
I drove to the Broadmoor and we sat on the outdoor deck. It was unbearably hot. No shade and too many people were trying to find solitude while day drinking, too. I love the Broadmoor but the lack of shade made the experience suck. Way too freaking hot!
We checked into the B & B and settled into Manitou. It is a slice of eclectic heaven. I really like this funky little mountain town.
All, in all, Birthday 2010 was amazing! Great food, chocolate, wine and friends. I am blessed! I have fantastic people in my life. I received many messages, via facebook and phone, but my favorite way of communicating is mail. And, yes, I received a few cards from the beautiful people in my life--THank You! You all made my day.....

Happy Birthday, Brian

A fe of our trips together--Playa del Carmen, 2005, ferry to Nicoya Peninsula, 2004, Colorado, 2003.

Everyday, I celebrate you--the best part of my heart/life. Happy 28th birthday to my soulmate. In every way, you are with me....

T-shirt

Healdsburg Half Marathon....Here we come.
Everything is order--lodging, car rental in process, flights accounted for, wineries to visit--we are happy with the exception of concept.
We need something that ties this weekend together.
I love wine....Easy to understand.....Destination Race...easy concept to grasp.
I persuaded three friends to join me since I am persuasive.
Actually, wine country sells itself. All I did was mention the 1/2 marathon and how fun it would be. And, I registered Sara Jo so she couldn't back out. I know...sneaky.
I am a narcisist. I suggested Harmony's Harem since I put it all together. But, then I sound like a pimp which I am not.
I am not creative; nor, have I ever claimed to be. But, tonight, as I considered my life, I realized that the perfect concept would be "Taste Life". I feel that that is what we are doing right now. Tasting life.
The journey that I have been on since 2006 continues to play out. This weekend will be so memorable with wine, food, running, friendship.
How else would you describe a destination race that ties your friends together?
I am fortunate to blessed with many friends. I have matured as a runner with Lindsay's help, watched Sara progress and lent encouragement to Megan. Yes, we are all in this together as mentor, guide, novice.
Taste Life we will....

On-line.....

Back on-line.
Finally.
I feel normal....I cannot believe how much time I had to spend, outside, when my laptop was down. Shari called me and told me to take the battery out and let it sit for 30 minutes and then put it back in. She said that maybe my laptop needed to reset itself.
Well, I tried that yesterday. I unplugged, everything, took the battery out and waited. A half hour later I turned it back on.
Nada. Nothing. No signs of life.
I felt that maybe I just needed a new battery and had already called my local computer guy to arrange a time for him to take a looksee at my laptop. He agreed to meet me today at the Bull & Bush.
I headed into work with the lap top and decided to see how it would react there. I conferred with my co-worker about my troubleshooting attempts, plugged it it and voila~~it turned on.
Not only that, but it completely started all the processes. Amazed, I saw that perhaps all it needed was to reset itself.
I am so happy that I do not need to buy a new computer.
So thankful, grateful, fortunate.
And, it feels natural/normal to have it back and on, at home. My on/off switch is jammed and so I continue to fear turning off the laptop. Sleep mode has been my savior until last week. I guess I need to take it in, somewhere, to get the switch unjammed.
Small problem that definitely can be fixed....

Issues with computer

I am taking a brief absence from my blog due to computer issues.
It sucks and I am so over it.
I have realized that I am too dependent on my internet connection and have managed to sneak over to Sara's, work, or currently--my aunt's house, to feed my addiction.
The Beer Fest is in town and I believed that I would be avoiding it, again, this year. Some of my friends from Kansas came out for the fest and offered me an extra ticket. Gotta love the Kansas Connection. Seriously, as much as I try to out run that part of my life--all roads lead back there. Or specifically, Lawrence and this small brewery that I worked at, briefly. Still, I have several associations/relationships based, purely, because of the 8 month work stint that I did there.
Small world is illustrated yet again.
I am lining up some travel for October, dreaming of the Broadmoor in November and Vegas trumps all else in December. Hoping to find a beach to celebrate Christmas. All thoughts appreciated....