Thursday, July 31, 2008

The Tech-Challenged Gadget Girl...

Ok, so I love gadgets. Anything that tells me how fast/slow, far/short, etc. I am going at any given training moment. I have a Garmin 305, a Polar 625 and am contemplating upgrading! I download this information to my computer and have nice, pretty charts and graphs to show for it. I can compute just about anything. I operate my Blackberry like Norman Stadler on a bike - just damn fast. I consider myself to be fairly wired...like most of us.

But I have a confession to make. Until today, I could not recall the lap splits on my very basic Ironman Timex watch. I have been operating by memorizing (kind of) all my swim splits and writing them down before I could forget (most of) them.

I finally made myself sit down and figure it out...now I feel like an UBER-DORK for not figuring this out MONTHS ago!!!

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Blog Names v. Dancer Names...

I am now meeting triathlete people by their blog name. Yep. What's her real name? Who knows, but I can tell you her blog name and the blog name of the friend who introduced us. To her I am not simply "Michelle"...I am "T3 Michelle" because that's how "Tri To Be Funny" has me listed on her blog.

It's kind of like going to a strip club and meeting "Crystal" and "Rose" and "Jasmine" (no offense to anyone whose real name is listed above)...you know those aren't their real names, yet that's how you know them...

One real difference is that maybe you don't really care to know the dancer's real names...I hope to someday learn the real names of my triathlete blogging mates.

Let's see some similarities between dancers (of the "pole" variety) and triathlete bloggers (female):

dancers: (when wearing clothes) wear spandex, lycra and are scantily clad
tri bloggers: (usually wearing some clothes) wear spandex, lycra and are scantily clad

dancers: dance to music
tri bloggers: spin to music

dancers: are socially engaging
tri bloggers: are socially engaging

Any other similarities??? Feel free to contribute any thoughts, ideas, whatnots...


Ok, not my best post...but it's late, I'm tired, give me a break!!

Monday, July 28, 2008

Grumpy Butt


That's me right now. Grumpy and for no apparent reason I can see, other than I'm at work and would really rather be anywhere else right now. Even a trip to the dentist sounds like fun...bring on the drill and tooth sanding machine-thing.

I got a good night's sleep, played with my puppies this morning and in general, had a good weekend. I guess that's why I'm grumpy...I'd rather still be doing any of those things. I had a really good ride on Saturday and even though I had a bad ride on Sunday, I had a really good run...and in between I had a lot of fun with a lot of friends.

Hi Ho...Hi Ho...it's back to work I go...hmph...

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Peek-a-boo


So keeping with the theme of "public display of a personal faux pas", let me add my own moment of brilliance...

I forgot my bra.

Yep, thought I packed it with all my other crap and when I went to shower it was no where to be found. I might have had time to go back by the house and solve my little dilemma, but nooooo...I had to sit and chat with the girls for half an hour. Of course, had I known I was bra-less I would not have dilly dallied...but that's neither here nor there at this point. And quite frankly, I was really enjoying my early morning girl talk with Amy and Val.

Now you could say that this is the one time where it's a blessing to be "small chested" because you don't have to worry about bouncing around. On the flip side though, if you are small, you usually rely on the ol' padding to give you a little more umph...

And to top if off, today it's FREEZING in my office!!! So you know what that means...yep, headlights are on.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Why all the hair??


Before I even start I will say that I'm sure I've been guilty of this at some time or another, but here I go anyway...

What's the deal with the armpit hair?? I know every once in a while you forget to pack a razor or something bizarre happens. But what I'm noticing is that more and more often women are coming to workouts with less than fresh pits. A little stubble is acceptable...we all get busy, lazy, in a hurry, whatever. But what I'm talking about is hair that's seriously 2+ days long. And for those of us who are blessed with beautiful, dark hair...WATCH OUT!! That stuff grows like weeds!!

Maybe we can come up with a sign to let our ladies know they need a little shave action??

So ladies, you're all beautiful but please, please show the pits a little love!!

(p.s. I've taken to keeping a cheap, single blade razor in my glove compartment...just in case)

Friday, July 18, 2008

Is it really Friday???

This has been without a doubt one of the looooongest weeks.

So much has happened/not happened/been said/done/etc. The days seemed to have blended together and I can't remember what I did without having to look at my calendar.

There was recovery from the Couples Tri and T3 post-race party...then there was the Splash n' Dash...then the Couples Volunteer party...then Key Bar catching up with non-tri friends...then wrapping it all up with a delightfully relaxing evening at the mall with Esther. Nothing like shopping, food and a bottle of wine to end the week!

Oh, and don't forget there was actual training splattered throughout the week. I have to say though, that I didn't feel my best. My workouts felt sluggish, at best. The Couples race really took it's toll on me and I didn't quite ever recover from it. I think because we did S-n'-D and the party in the same week, I just couldn't get back into my groove. I even MISSED SWIM PRACTICE on Thursday...and I NEVER miss swim. I was just soooo damn tired.

All in all though, I did manage 3 swims, 1 spin, 1.5 runs and 1 core...tomorrow I'll shoot for 10 mi but be happy with 7 mi, as I haven't had a long run since CDA...wish me luck!!!

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On a somber note, we (T3) are changing our long ride to Sunday so that we can participate in the memorial ride for a fallen cyclist...Michael Argall. I never knew Michael, although I had seen him around and his loss is felt by the entire community. We will ride in his memory.

Too much sadness and death has brush closely by my side and I can't help but be a little fearful as to where it may strike next. I know I cannot dwell on it, but I still can't help but think of it from time to time.

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On a much more pleasant note, several teammates and Coach Chrissie will be taking over wine country for the 70.3 Vineman and our very own Amanda will be tearing it up at IM Lake Placid along with some local pros...GOOD LUCK TO ALL!!!

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Saying a prayer...

I have a friend, M, who I used to work with but lost regular touch with after the layoffs and life's ebbs and flows. We were all about the same age and used to hang out and drink wine and just have fun. We kept up with each other over time through another friend. She and her husband had a baby and so then we would see each other at the occasional party...you know how that goes.

After the baby was born she was diagnosed with breast cancer and went through hell to fight it. I saw her a few months ago and she was radiant and even more amazing than I ever remembered her. With what she and her family went through, it's no wonder!

The joy fell silent as we have now learned that the cancer has returned. Now there are more tests and more waiting. While the prognosis isn't good, there is a little hope...sometimes that's enough. While I'm trying to make sense of it, even though I know it's impossible, I can't help but want to scream, "It's not fair!!" Knowing all too well that life isn't fair.

I've never been a religious person but over time I find myself becoming more spiritual...and when things like this happen, I can't help but think that maybe a little prayer certainly can't hurt.

So to my friend and her family, I pray that they remain strong during this terribly difficult time. I pray that she is able to withstand whatever treatment she will endure in her fight against the disease. I pray that her little boy grows up with his mother and not just her memory.

Makes you think of your own mortality just a bit, doesn't it?

Thursday, July 10, 2008

The Couples Triathlon


So this weekend is the third event in the Texas Tri Series and the second one of the season for me to do volunteer coordinating. I'm sooo excited!!

I already had the "panic" dream, you know the one - you bolt straight up out of bed in a cold sweat and say, "SHIT! I don't have enough volunteers!" That was on Sunday. The week leading up to the event is usually very hectic and I seem to always have a little bit of a sick feeling in my stomach and constantly worried. There is a rush of emails to send and respond to and this time seemed especially difficult because I just got back from Coeur d'Alene and that really seemed to throw me off track. This panic seems to last up until about an hour or so into the event. It's not until then that I feel like I can relax a bit. When I can look out and see people having fun on the course, volunteers smiling and spectators cheering...that's when I relax!!

The great thing about Austin is that it has a strong triathlon community and people are generally eager to help, which makes my job easier. I also think people are eager to help because the guys at Jack and Adam's are so awesome! They really care about what they do and the people they help and you can feel it.

Seriously, if I could do this for a living I'd be ALL OVER IT!!

What is that people say? "Follow your heart and the rest will follow"...something like that. This is where my heart leads me and I love everything about this sport - the good, the bad, and the ugly.

The Surrogate Boyfriend...

That's what you get called when you know how to change a bike flat or can do other minimal bike maintenance tasks and help your female friends with those things.

So that's been my problem!!

Thanks, Tom!

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Marrying the new man in my life...

Yes, I'm going down that road again. I feel pretty confident that this man will be around whenever I need him and even when times get hard, he will be supportive and challenging at the same time. He will make me discover things about myself that I never knew I could do. I will be angry with him some times and at other times, I won't be able to get enough of him. And even if we decide to separate for some crazy reason, he will always be a part of me...and I will always be a part of him.

I am marrying IRONMAN.

That's right folks. I am officially committed to Ironman for the next year.

I just registered for Ironman Coeur d'Alene, 2009.