The Carbo Loading starts now

So its Thursday evening, we leave tomorrow morning for Oakland via Baltimore and then drive to Monterey for the big race on Sunday. Couldn't think of what else to eat for dinner so I'm having pasta...Have made the decision to leave the laptop at home and enjoy a total vacation away from email and drama [don't ask me how the DC Tri Club board is going..you don't want to know].

I've been on the verge of tears for the past few days not because I'm blue or sad, but because I think I'm overwhelmed with the marathon, traveling, selling the house, moving, oh, yea, two more races in May and June...whew...when is it over? Here's the most sad example of how easily I could cry; we were watching "The Deadliest Catch" on Discovery Channel the other night and there was a man thrown overboard from another boat and the crew from the boat "we" were watching rescued him...it was emotional. These big tough fishermen were crying so why not me too.

The house is now painted inside [something I should have done years ago], the new windows go in on Thursday next week, the paperwork to list the property has been signed, list price of $385k, new roof [less than 3 yrs old], kitchen updated less than 6 mos ago, bamboo floors, 3 br, 1 1/2 ba, off street parking, quiet street near the Atlas District. [How does that sound for sales??]. Oh yea, security system pre-installed, and no, Toby is not "conveying" with the house.

So back to the big race; I'm hoping to finish in under 5 hrs, here's a link to the course, with the elevation and the race is Rural and low tech...no way to track me on the way. I'll let you know when I'm done whether I actually crossed the finish line or not. The marathon web site is http://www.bsim.org and since the race is one way, we'll be taking a bus from Monterey at 4:15 a.m. to the race start, which isn't 'till 6:45, it only takes about 1 hr to drive to the start...so we'll be hanging around waiting to begin for at least 1 1/2 hrs. hmmmm...what to do what to do....

I'll take photos, not during the race although that thought did cross my mind. I started to freak out about not having a pocket in the outfit I've decided to wear so I bought a wrist band that has a zipper pocket in it...still not sure what I'm going to PUT in the pocket but it comforts me to HAVE a pocket.

For those of you out there who have done a marathon [and you know who you are], and advice on how to minimize post race pain would be helpful. I intend to take a 10 min ice bath post race, eat my way from one end of Carmel to Seaside and back, and sleep a great deal. We'll be headed to SF on Monday for two days of limping around the worst walking city post marathon. I've sworn to buy myself a Paul Frank t-shirt as a reward if I finish. And if not, I may still get it to drown my sorrows.

Essentially the running goals have been achieved; 10 is the new 6 and hills ARE my friends...John says I'm much better than when we started but its hard for me to tell. I'm sure I am but it still isn't as much fun as biking. I've learned valuable lessons about the value of having a good massuse, the need to stretch often and don't skimp on the painkillers/anti-inflamitories. Advil IS your friend.

More post race but hope all is well with you and yours!!

Cory

Time to move to West Seattle

So it’s been an eventful time since my last post in January! Lots to tell so I guess I’ll start in the beginning... Alden and I had a wonderful time on his company-sponsored cruise in February. It was great to get out in the sun and away from the Seattle gray for a time. We didn’t get as much adventuring in as we might have hoped for, but the 24 hour buffet with its all-you-can-eat-tray-o-bacon distracted us enough so we didn’t even mind. It was a great opportunity to meet Alden’s co-workers and get to know their families. It was also a lesson in really good HR. They know how to treat their employees! My favorite picture of the cruise was taken by a co-worker while we were snorkeling in Belize. I’ve attached the link since I can’t figure out how to grab the pic itself to post it.

We returned to the beginnings of spring here in Seattle which basically means intermittant windows of really nice weather (like Friday when we set a record high of 79 degrees) punctuating the normal wind, cold and rain. Good thing we had plenty of furniture shopping to do in malls to keep us out of the elements! Happily, the last major pieces of furniture were delivered a couple of weeks ago. We’ve even painted the office a fabulous wasabi green. It is beginning to feel like home... which is good since (drumroll, please) Alden and I are getting married!

We’ve been talking about our future and are so excited to be moving into a more committed space together and celebrating with family and friends. Alden proposed on a cliff overlooking Puget Sound after a Starbucks-coffee-infused walk in the woods. It couldn’t have been more beautiful. I’m honored to be wearing a ring that pays homage to our maternal grandmothers (who share a name) and therefore to our families together. We shared the news with my parents bookending the Easter Vigil and were able to tell Alden’s immediate family all at once as we hosted our first Kroll family function: Easter breakfast. It was a little touch-and-go there for a while with the hash browns, but the fabulous bacon saved the day! After breakfast, we called the Boston clan (Molly was even there) to share the joy and introduce Alden to Eastah, McCarthy style replite with dropped r’s & hoots in the background as the phone was passed around. It’s been an incredible experience so far and I’m so honored to have come this far and have so much to look forward to with Alden at my side.

The next steps for us including basking in the glow of our engagement while moving me, Fern and my accoutrements to West Seattle. We’ll entertain Nate and Jan as our first houseguests at the beginning of May on their visit to the Pacific Northwest. In the interim, I’ll run the Vancouver half marathon again this year and am hoping to break my pr from last May. Ms. Churches, however, has me beat with her upcoming marathon and its tough training time (18 miles this last weekend- yikes!) so I’m looking forward to that race report.

Wishing you all well!

Time to move on

So, I've decided that its time to get out of the home ownership business .... and John has graciously invited me to move into his house; somehow I feel that I coerced an invitation but what's done is done and I'm moving ahead with getting the house in order to sell.

What this entails is painting [I'm paying for the house to be painted inside], new windows, sprucing up the front area with flowers, taking photos, etc...its an ordeal.

So on top of running, biking and swimming 11 hrs per week, working close to 40 [cause we all know I'm an underemployed government worker], taking care of a dog and cat, and other sorts of things, I'm getting stuff in order to move out of the house.

The target list date is the Thursday before Mother's day, hopefully will be nice weather and will have an open house that weekend.

Currently, though, everything is in upheaval, bed is stacked in the middle bedroom while the actual bedroom is being painted, the smell of paint is overwhelming and I can barely find enough clothes to actually get dressed to go to work.

However, I did discover the amazing power of Craigslist and managed to sell two pieces of furniture already. Will be selling a bunch more stuff, believe you me....

The Cherry Blossoms are in full bloom, the tourists have emerged in droves, and the weather has been amazing. Wish you all were here [well, I see Meagan and Scott every so often] and I really miss the bike rides in the A.M.

Hope y'all are doing your thing in your space and hope to hear more details soon!

Oh, yea, and I'm counting down the days 'till April 29....