How glad to be Spring clad

My two favorite shopping seasons? Autumn and Spring. Sweater weather and sweet dresses; that’s what it all comes down to for me.

I usually start looking around for Spring dresses in March because it seems to herald the warmer weather that I’ve been aching for. At the very least it puts me in a good mood. I found this simple jersey, faux wrap-a-round dress to be just tres chic and exactly what I want. I love the messy dry paintbrush  look between the black and the white. It’s creative. It’s artsy. I love it.

Coupled with these shoes (yellow shoes are my best friendzies):

Sigh…I will watch and wait for these goodies to go on sale. In this economy, I don’t buy nuthin’ without a red line through it.

Mother Nature is my homey

Is anyone else (in Utah) enjoying the beautiful and unusually warm weather we’re experiencing as much as me? Because I am LOVING it! It’s teasing me with Spring and I am taking full advantage.

The best part about this weather is that it makes running outside so very enjoyable, yes indeedy. I can run at 5:30 at night and not feel like half of my face is going to drop off or freeze in mid-grimace so that I look like some special ALS patient out for a run. I was getting tired of people throwing concerned or overly pitiful congratulatory looks my way because of how the bitter cold affected my face: “Aw, look at her! She’s running! Good for you, honey! Way – to – go!” Ah yes, the slow speech pattern we all somehow affect when talking to someone of a potentially lesser mental capacity. Or foreigners. Same diff. Of course, it didn’t help when my knee was really in the throes of pain and I was compensating a bit, thus making my normal running gait look a bit like I was jumping imaginary mini hurdles. Couple that with Stroke Victim Face and yeah, I was my own Special Olympics on Parade. 

Anyhoo, I’m getting off track. I meant this post to be all about how much I am loving Mother Nature right now. Everything is so pretty and starting to turn green albeit prematurely but still – GREEN. It puts me in such a good mood that she’s cooperating so nicely with my running schedule that music just springs forth everytime I step outside:

She’s got style, she’s got grace, she’s a winner

She’s a Lady, whoa whoa whoa, she’s a lady

Talking about that little lady, and the lady is mine

I don’t know why Tom Jones is singing in my head about this weather but do I really care? Ummm, nope.

I just got online today to get myself registered with my Hood to Coast team for our big event at the end of August. I am SOOOO excited for this race! I did it a couple of years ago and it is just a party and a half. This year I will be in Van 2 so I’m looking at all the legs right now, trying to determine which one I want to take on and which one I want to avoid (I’m thinking it’s Leg 9/21/33; Jason, that is ALL yours). Nothing beats running at all hours of the day and night, riding in a van with 5 other sweaty folks, and getting hardly any sleep at all for about 36 hours. Some people use drugs to get that euphoric. Me? Hood to Coast, baby.

Besides Hood to Coast, I’m currently training for the San Diego Marathon at the end of May. I am a little behind in my training thanks to my bum knee but no worries. My goal in any race is to finish with a smile on my face. To help with my SD Marathon training, I will proably do the Salt Lake Half Marathon on April 18th. I wanted to do the Ogden Half as well mid-May but it sold out already. Dang it!

Did I mention that I am loving the weather we are having? And that it reminds me that racing season is just around the corner with so many fun events coming up? Yay! Celebrate good times COME ON! 

Maybe that face wash ain’t workin’ so well

I always thought when I was younger that at some point as I aged, clear skin would just be a  normal part of my life. Teen acne would be a distant memory and I could relish old age with all of it’s acne-free goodness…and liver spots. I figured it was pretty reasonable to assume that by the time I turned 30 I would no longer have to deal with a splotch on my face here and there. In fact, I just assumed that Estee Lauder was some sort of skin goddess who made it possible for women to look be-you-ti-full beyond all possibility.

Ahem – Where is my perfect skin??

The thing is aging shows up on your face rather quickly in the form of crow’s feet, wrinkled brow, laugh lines, tightened lips (to name a few) and I don’t think that dealing with the occasional breakout should be a part of it. I’ve got enough to deal with without having to reach for my tiny tube of coverup every now and again. Typically, I have to reach for that item in the middle of each big project I’m assigned to. 

I wash, I exfoliate, I tone, I exfoliate some more, I lather on moisterizer and groundbreaking “night creams” that will somehow turn my face into the Amazing Youth-Defying Act of 2009. I drink water – LOTS of water – and take vitamins. I stay out of the sun as much as possible. I’ve taken up yoga and guitar to relieve my stress from time to time. And running too. Only, running actually wreaks havoc on my sensitive epidermis [side note: do you remember that silly joke we all loved in elementary school? "Uh oh, your epidermis is showing!" Why did we think we were so funny?], especially when wearing a visor/hat or anything next to my skin. Can’t sweat just cleanse the body instead of inspire new breakouts? Sigh…

Tonight my kid even started to point out my flaws. Well, at least that was my first impression. We were sitting down for dinner and he starts to stare at me intently. He leans forward, propping up his head in his hands, elbows planted into the tablecloth, furrows his brow and squints for a few seconds.

“Mom, I can see the future in your pimples.”

I stopped eating and dropped my fork.

“Excuse me – what??? What did you just say to me?” 

He leans back and shrugs, points to his eyeball and says, “You know, your pimples. I can see all the way to next week in them.”

“You mean pupils - not pimples.” 

“Oh yeah…that’s what I meant!”

Relief washed over me (while my hands did an ever-so-subtle sweep of my face – was I really breaking out? Eeek! Thankfully, NO) and just a yoctosecond (that’s for you, Al) later, I busted up laughing. Thank heavens for pupils. NOT pimples.

Gimme da love (instead of today)

Yuck. It’s Tuesday. But it sure feels like a Monday. Or a Mondazy as I sometimes lazily call it. I should be so happy that I have a shortened work week. Instead I feel like today has been a punishment for having an extra day off. Where’s the love?

Snow. Why snow, why? What is it about your natural cycle that prompts you to occur at EXACTLY the time I need to head into work – and then again at EXACTLY the time I need to head home? Aaarrrgghhh.

Accidents. They happen. Unfortunate part of driving that they may be, how in the world do you jump into a big semi-truck full of 47,000 lbs of frozen patties (the MickyD variety) and promptly fall asleep TWENTY minutes after heading out? Thank you, thank you oh so much for the added delay of trying to get out of Davis County. I hear there are amazing substances that could help in your sleep deprived state: No-Doz, Red Bull, Pixie Sticks, Ginseng, a pencil to your upper thigh. All of these might have been of some assistance to you before you decided to try driving this morning. Instead there will be 47,000 people unable to purchase a $.69 cent Tuesday special. Sheesh.

Work. Sigh…it did not go well today. I am not one to use profanity but after a few project meetings, a run in with one sr. manager who just felt it was her absolute mission to drive me insane today, and the LAMEST questions I’ve ever had to respond to by supposedly “bright and intelligent” co-workers, a few saucy tidbits of vocabulary were just a teetering on my tongue. 

All of this brings me to the fact that I would love to start my weekend back over again. I had a fantastically wonderful weekend spent with Caden and The Guy. Friday, The Guy took me out to dinner at Ottavios down in Provo {little note: he’s not a big believer in going out to eat on Valentines Day – too long of a wait, overcrowded places everywhere, sugar overload; I am not overly sentimental about the particular day, just as long as something happens that is “special”}. Oh my goodness, I absolutely adore this restaurant. Try hearty Italian dishes served with a side of accordian music and the occasional operetta. This place oozes Italian ambience and I absolutely love going to eat there. The owner walks around constantly, asking folks how their evening is going, is the food good, are you enjoying the music and so on. You MUST try this little restaurant. I promise on my life you will not be disappointed.

Saturday I took Caden out to dinner at Tucanos (his choice) because he loves “the meat place”. They had the restaurant all decked out in perfectly lovely ambient lighting, a single rose as a centerpiece at each table, and chocolate covered strawberries for a surprise treat. I love spending time with this kid and we had a most enjoyable early dinner before heading over to see the The Pink Panther 2. Cute movie. I liked it better than the first one. And when I got home, guess what was on my front porch?

And that’s not all he surprised me with. He gave me something else that I plan on keeping with me day in and day out. Well, at least for the most part.  

{still not the blue box variety – but nonetheless a big surprise!}

3 Hour Layover = Major People Watching

Here I am, currently sitting at the Denver airport, trying to live out an extremely unfortunate 3 hour layover from Albuquerque, and what to do to pass the time…maybe walk around, look at the overpriced gift shops, stay away from all the scads and oodles of fattening foods, trip people, follow them too closely…I know! Play the Secret Lives game with passing travelers. It can sometimes just be called Observe the Wackos, too, but I often like to mess with peoples’ lives (even if it’s only in my head).

Right now, I am staring across the way at a very portly gentleman in quite the vibrant purple sweater. Umm, it’s a little too purple for a guy so all I can think is that he must have some vision impairment. Perhaps he was blinded as a kid while skiing at Vail, sadly crashing down on the end of his ski pole which damaged his retinas resulting in near permanent blindness for the rest of his life. And here he is, making his annual pilgrimmage to Colorado to face the steep slopes in veiled darkness. Wow. That’s so impressive and I really admire him for his courage, strength and…oh wait, he’s getting up and plugging his Blackberry in now. Dang. That was much too dexterous for a blind man so I guess he’s not the hero I imagined him to be.

There’s Telly Savalas’ twin brother. He looks a bit shifty if you ask me. And right behind him is a ornithologist from the University of Nebraska. It’s his bushy mustache and goofy Coke-bottle glasses that give him away. Oh, there’s the girl that works at the Piggly Wiggly with her teenage boyfriend Jeb. I’m not seeing any parentals around them so perhaps they are running away. Or being sent away. They are teenagers after all.

Whoa! There’s a guy laden with his beautiful guitar, dressed down in shorts and flipflops (it’s snowing outside right now) and I’m thinking that folk tour to San Diego didn’t go so well. He doesn’t seem to be wanting to strum any chords right now. It’s okay, man. Next time try the Oregon Coast and leave out the song about your ex-girlfriend Tammy who made your hands all clammy. Silly.

I must be getting delirious from sleep exhaustion because I swear I just saw Bill Murray. Only he was a little chubbier. And suffered from a broader case of alopecia. And his nose was different. But I’m almost pretty sure it could’ve been him.

I am sooooooo tired…and my darn plane doesn’t leave for another hour.

Singin’ my heart out

(photo courtesy of The Guy)

This was me last year on my cruise to the Southern Caribbean. For some odd reason that I still can not justify, I felt compelled to get up and try a little karaoke the first night of the cruise. I love to sing but I would not call myself a solo singer whatsoever; I feel more comfortable surrounded by a couple of others that will help boo!”st my confidence. However, I am a notorious daredevil – if you dare me to do something, I will do it (barring any legal ramifications, of course). And guess what The Guy dared me to do?

“I betcha you can’t do it,” he taunted.

“Do what? Sing? I can do whatever I want. Sheesh.”

“Prove it. Get up there and sing!”

I looked around, maybe 30 people were filing up the small lounge area so I took a deep breath, walked over to the massive song catalog and proceeded to find the song “Out Tonight” from Rent. And then I had to sit there and wait…and wait…and wait for minutes, all the while my stomach was churning and my hands were shaking. What was I thinking?!? 

The next thing I knew I was being introduced as the gal to kick off the inaugural karaoke night on the Crown Princess. And about 20 more people had trickled on in. I was literally sick to my stomach. Oh well. Here I go: “What’s the time? Well, it’s gotta be close to mid-niiiiggghht…” Halfway through I started to relax a little bit so that by the end I was throwing my arm up in the air on the chorus: “Ooooooooouuuuuuuuuut tonight! I have to gooooooooo…nah-nah-nah ooooooouuuuuuut tonight!”

Singin’ my heart out and not even caring. That’s exactly what I was doing. I was still shaking after I was done but it was more from exhilaration than desperation. And it was so much FUN. Still scary. Still almost completely paralyzing. But I can’t help but smile everytime I think back on it.

Why do I bring this up? Because next Wednesday I am supposed to sing as part of our Valentines Luncheon and I’m a litte freaked out – AGAIN. This time it’s part of a guitar duet with my buddy, Evan. He’s Mr. Guitar Extraordinaire and he’s put together a rendition of Colbie Caillat’s Realize. Ai yi yi, my stomach is churning. I told him we should do something silly and fun like perform Sonny and Cher’s I Got You Babe, and I would be Sonny and he could be Cher. I can do funny – but serious??? Help me, help me, help me.

I guess I just have to keep reminding myself that it pays to sing your heart out every once in awhile. Doesn’t it? I have to look at the picture again.

Mid-morning munchies

I am craving animal crackers. Right this very instant. And I do not know why. It’s not like I am a 4 year old needing an afternoon snack before naptime {although the naptime is sounding very, very attractive right now}. I don’t remember the last time I actually even ate an animal cracker. Caden is more of a goldfish type of kid anyway. Yet I even just changed my Facebook status to read “Angie wants animal crackers…and I do not know why”.

I swear to you, at exactly 11:47 a.m. this morning, all I could think of was animal crackers. I could smell their golden graham sweetness, I wanted them so much. I don’t get many cravings these days but when I do…man. It’s different than when I was pregnant and I would all but kill somebody for a lime {used to eat those suckers like gumdrops}. This craving can be controlled. If I don’t indulge within the first two hours of the “urge to splurge”, it goes away and never comes back. So I figure if I type about animal crackers for two hours straight I will have no temptation to buy a little box covered in a silly circus motif. Sigh…

I guess they are not that bad for you. I mean, come on, look at the box. A Good Source of Calcium. And my bones be needing that calcium more these days than when I was a lil’ child. And apparently they are vegan…which is…cool. Since I am not a vegan. But hey, little FYI for you there.

I want to eat a zebra. That’s all I have to say about that. Happy Tuesday.