the week:
I’m finally Iowa official and got my new state driver’s license. I need it in this state to register to vote (we don’t have the 30-day deadline as I experienced in previous states, but we can vote early here), and frankly, seven months was long enough to procrastinate. It’s kinda sad to give up my last tie of being a Pennsylvania resident.
weekend:
RACE WEEKEND!!!! I’ll try my best to relax for the next couple days, as I pull together all of my race day preparations, including getting downtown to enjoy a little bit of the Expo. We have another Iowa game tailgate Saturday morning, so trying to also do fun things to ward off any race day nervousness.
seven things, seven days:
1. I’m running another marathon in 2017! — and registration is now open for the Vermont City Marathon. Save $5 on registration with discount code BibRaveDsct17.
2. Meal Planning worked out REALLY WELL for me this week, and the jar salads that I made for lunch kept me full through the remainder of my work day. Definitely making this a weekly habit!
3. Have you heard of Book of the Month? I got my first book — this is my kind of monthly subscription! [referral link]
4. Container Store is opening in West Des Moines. SOON. (all the exclamation points!!!)
5. FedEx does its deliveries at 8am… And when it’s WINE, it’s both hilarious and WTF. He laughed and told me that my breakfast was ready.
6. I really like this running-focused article on sports psychology at work: Train your brain to run your best {via Runner’s World} Thanks, Coach!
7. Training (and staying strong) for a running SEASON. {via Runner’s World}
the week:
Something WAY important that I skipped in last week’s post — my annual skin cancer screening. I got two more biopsies of moles that have changed. One, a super black flat mark on my abdomen that has some irregular edges; the other, one of the god-awful ugly large brown moles that developed over the last couple years and now has a new dark ridge through it. The latter mole, mostly cosmetic, but everything they take off gets biopsied because of my history.
This is your reminder, 30-somethings (and other-somethings, if you’re here — hi!!!): Schedule your annual skin check!
weekend:
Well, I’m planning on getting my car washed and detailed (finally… only two road trips later) and want to finish the book I’m currently reading. I would also like to find some of my Halloween decorations to put out — because despite the weather being 75, it’s OCTOBER PEOPLE.
I’m also going to attempt some Meal Planning, thanks to some encouragement from Nymph in the Woods.
seven things, seven days:
1. I FINALLY got a massage this week, for the first time this training cycle. I upgraded for the “athlete” package — which included being rubbed down with IcyHot and my legs being draped in hot towels and OMG this might have been the best sports massage ever.
2. The Drake concert in Des Moines was INCREDIBLE. Great show, and I LOVED Future’s set, too.
3. I SWEAR that I woke up to an earthquake on Tuesday (unconfirmed, based on all my internet searching). That said, here’s some interesting science behind why the Midwest has earthquakes. {via Science Mag}
4. I added 4 more races to my fall calendar (sorry, boyfriend! haha)
5. Hillary for President. ✊
6. WINDIANS! #rallytogether
7. What separates Champions apart from “Almost Champions” {via Science of Us}
I heard this quote on a podcast this week… HOLY SHIT.
the week:
The biggest news of the week — I got the job! The offer officially came over this week and was announced to our department. The congratulations notes from various coworkers really meant so much, and I’m incredibly happy to have been placed on such an amazing team.
weekend:
Tonight is the kick-off party to Go Blog Social conference here in Des Moines. I decided to make a little staycation out of it, and booked myself a one night-stay at Hotel Renovo.
Then after the conference ends on Saturday, I will be attending my first Iowa-Iowa State party (wearing neither of those colors). Somehow I’ll muster enough energy to run 10 miles on Sunday.
You know you’re at a small town race when… the parking directions tell you to turn left at the only stoplight in town. And Madrid is a small town race (pronounced MAAA-drid, unlike the city in Spain, if you’re not from Iowa). This was the 38th annual Madrid Milers Labor Day Run.
Flat Mel — no bib before race day!
There were three race distances as part of the Labor Day festival: 2 mile, 5 mile and a 15 mile (!!!). Next year, I definitely want to go do the 15-mile race, as you get to run over the High Trestle Bridge. I thought the 5-milers got to do that too (same with another woman that I talked to at the end of the race), and realized on race morning that it was the High Trestle Trail.
I planned this race with my coach during a much-needed cut-back week. My coach created a race plan for me, which started with a one mile warm-up (wut?!). Yeah, I have never run immediately BEFORE a race, but I had to trust the process (and I ended up feeling great while I was running, so…):
I was supposed to start nice and controlled; naturally, the race started downhill and I took off not realizing that I was pacing with some (apparently) 8-minute 15-milers. Uh, NOPE. I regained control just in time for the first uphill. I paced with two local guys soon after and stayed with them for most of the race — until I really picked up pace at the 4-mile mark. This strategy actually worked out well for me to keep my pace controlled. I did start out too fast, but ended up laughing and talking with these two guys and they kept me just about where I wanted to be.
Registration and Cost: $25 (+ fees) through Active.com, with race day registration available as well.
Packet Pick-Up and Free Swag: Bib pickup at Madrid Elementary School the morning of the race opened up an hour before start time. I misread their event details that there would be chip time, but there was a bib and electronic timer at the finish. All race entries came with a free t-shirt. No finishers medals for this race.
Start Line: Ha, we started with a whistle — the 5-milers lined up with the 15-milers, and the 2-milers started in the opposite direction on the other side of the street.
Weather: OMG THE BEST. I did my warm-up in long sleeves because of the chill in the air, and it was a perfect high-50s come race time. FALL, GUYS!
Course: We started at the elementary school (down the street from that only traffic light in town) and the course contained various terrains and experiences: part road, part trail, part county gravel (mud) road, part neighborhood; and finished in downtown Madrid — the CUTEST late 1800s, small town kind of downtown. I loved it! I’m thankful to have connected with a couple locals who have completed the race before because, honestly, I think I would have got lost at a few points. There were colored arrows denoting each race course and a few volunteers sprinkled around, but at some turns I would have had no idea on on my own. It’s always good advice to print a copy of the course map when doing one of these small races, and I’ll definitely do that for next time.
Experience: Everything that you love about small races — generally, really friendly runners and volunteers (seriously, the two guys I ran with were born and raised in Madrid and knew every single person we ran by).
Finish Line chute!
Finish Line: There was a mini chute and an electronic sign for finish times (with a woman reading the times out loud as you crossed). There were bananas and water available, which you had to cross back over the finish to get to. But, small race, so just look both ways before crossing!
Running it in, I was actually really confused where the finish chute was, as it just looked like a bunch of people clustered around, and I almost turned down another street until I asked the group “where’s the finish?!” HA. I was in fastest sprint mode and I’m sure it sounded like I was yelling.
After Party: I stuck around for the results and award ceremony for the 5-milers, which started about 20 minutes after I finished. When I saw 3rd place announced for my age group, and it was the chick who I passed at the 4.5 mark, I got so excited knowing that I would take home a medal. That’s rare to do when you’re at the tail end of a 30-39 age group bracket, but such a confidence booster, despite knowing it was a small race and runner pool.
Our Des Moines local brand: Anderson Erickson chocolate milk available at the finish line!
Bonus: CHOCOLATE MILK AT THE FINISH LINE!
Random Awesome: There was a guy running the 5 who has completed the race in the same shoes for 34 years (!!!). It was really cool to see him finish, and he took home one of his own age group awards.
Seriously, these shoes have some stories! I love this so much!
OVERALL The Great: I placed 2nd in my age group AND got a PR! The Good: The weather! The Bad: Can’t find race results posted online. Whomp, whomp. The Ugly: I always get so anxious about the lack of race details and communication before a race. I had to only assume that I picked my bib up the morning of the race with the same-day registration peeps. Again, always something to remember when doing small races, if you’re someone who is super Type A!
SILVER! I love that the race is marked on the back of the keychain — what a clever idea!
RESULTS
A new PR: 47:24 (ish; didn’t catch the final split seconds, though it’s about a 1:30 faster than my previous PR!)
AND 2nd in my 30-39 age group (holy shit!)
So, our official first time in Des Moines was back in mid-Winter, when it was 20-below and our visit was all mostly secret (pending job offers and such). We stayed downtown at the Des Lux Hotel and visited a few of downtown’s restaurants — Centro (great cheese tray for me, but otherwise not a gluten-free friendly menu) and Proof (amazing dinner experience all-around) and looked at a LOT of houses with a Realtor. As much as I wanted to explore and walk around the city, it was impossible due to that wind chill (um, 20 BELOW), so we mostly drove around and/or stayed warm in the hotel (which had a freakin’ fireplace in the room!!!).
We’ve since had our first legit visit to downtown (for non-work visiting purposes) and entertained our first visitors over Memorial Day Weekend. Our plans typically include food and fun, and almost always starts with BRUNCH. This will be the first of a LOT of posts about my new city because it’s awesome here. And you should come visit me. Probably in August for the Iowa State Fair. 😉
Here’s some of my faves (and a reminder to myself that I DEFINITELY need to get back to Proof)…
Brunch at Americana: We’ve now been twice for their Bombshell Brunch, which includes unlimited Mimosas and Bloody Mary drinks that you can make your own AND two roomfuls of food buffets including the usual breakfast foods, a mashed potato bar, a taco bar, and a waffle bread pudding (!!!) — AND a grilled cheese station at the front bar. Their menu includes a few additional breakfast-themed shots, which are amazing. They also do brunch on both Saturday and Sunday.
Pappajohn Sculpture Park: The place most Instagrammed in all of Des Moines, I’m sure. Public art takes a whole new shape in downtown and even being down there a few times already, I always find something new to take in (and photograph, naturally). Feel free to bring down a lunch or picnic basket and hang out — they encourage enjoying the space!
Downtown Farmers Market: Holy cow, I cannot emphasize how massive this market it; it’s nothing like what I imagined and no open air farmers market compares. And now I understand why thousands of Iowans get out of bed early on Saturday to spend their mornings there. You can sample cheeses and wines, and shop all in-season produce, and even buy flowers, all while listening to live music and gawking at the city’s most adorable dog population. Also, the lines for the food trucks and stands are just INSANE. And just when you think you’ve seen it all, the farmer stands stretch down ANOTHER intersection and side street. It’s overwhelming to think you can do it all in two hours… so give yourself the entire morning.
East Village souvenir shopping:Raygun t-shirts is one of my favorite places to hang out and crack up. Not only do they have all the funny local tees, there are other fun localized postcards, books, magnets — something like a tourist shop for the Midwesterner. They also sell one of my favorite brands of casual clothes, Alternative Apparel.
BONUS: Just down the block is a place dedicated to a certain craft of the state: Iowa Tap Room (there’s even a good selection of ciders, wines, and meads for me) or a Della Viti wine bar (where you can buy a card and select your own samples!).
I’m also starting a Des Moines Bucket List, so if you’re from here or live here, tell me what I should go do!
For the summer, I’d like to:
Bike ride in Madrid to High Trestle Bridge; I’d also like t take a second trip to Jasper Winery
Eat my way around the Iowa State Fair – ALL THE… FRIED THINGS.
the week:
So Pittsburgh won a thing. The thing that they won the season just before we moved there… and now, just after we’ve left. I’M SO MAD THAT I MISSED THAT CELEBRATION!
Cleveland’s also on its way to (possibly) win a thing. And, WHY CAN’T WE EVER LIVE IN A CITY WHEN A TEAM WINS A CHAMPIONSHIP?!
weekend:
Tomorrow is BACCoon RIDE TRES — a day full of biking, bacon, and booze!
I’m also super excited about my spa pedicure on Sunday. I haven’t had one since before I was marathon training last year (and my weird toenail from Gasparilla has finally grown out). o_O
seven things, seven days:
1. This article about biphobia and bi-erasure really hit me in the gut this week — my gut churns and my heart hurts for what happened in Orlando:
Bisexual people, pansexual people, polysexual people, any non monosexual people, when you worry that you aren’t gay enough, when your identity is erased, when you feel like you don’t fit anywhere… you are not alone.
2. I found out this week that the Cheese Society is having its annual conference in Des Moines next month. And with it, hosting a FESTIVAL OF CHEESE. We already have plans that night and I could just SCREAM.
3. I did Side Crow at yoga!
4. It’s still 90 degrees here all week.
5. Did you hear the one about a $6 Wal-mart wine winning a top award IN THE WORLD? LOLZ
6. I love Brutalist architecture. *swoon* {via aeon}
7. DELIBERATE PRACTICE: The expert (and one of my psychology idols) on being an expert. {via Business Insider}
the week:
Feeling a lot like my first week of work, as I’m transitioning into a new role on my team. So, it’s been a lot of training (both receiving and giving, as I have to train a couple team members who are taking over my previous tasks) and exploding my brain with new procedures and systems.
BUT I love that the work is a little more intense and challenging and providing me with a broader skill set.
It’s also really, really hot this week — like, in the 90s, hot. It feels nothing like Pittsburgh 90-degree weather (which I found completely sticky and oppressive), and I actually spent time OUTSIDE kind of enjoying the hot winds (yeah, it’s still windy!).
weekend:
Last night we went to a fundraiser at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge, which is in Prairie City, Iowa. I want to post something separately about this wonderful preservation because it was a beautiful place and a fun event.
Since it’s going to be close to 100 degrees with the sweat index today, I’m going to spend some time in some air-conditioning at Ulta replenishing some of my make-up stash (birthday gift cards, ftw!). And then, we’re golfing on Sunday — I get to practice some of what I learned at my lesson this week.
seven things, seven days:
1. I plan to attend one of these beginner adult ballet classes at Des Moines Social Club.
2. I’m also starting to think about CrossFit again. I’m just… not comfortable or confident with lifting alone at my gym (and I can’t get a trainer to respond to my online requests to set up an appointment), which is kind of a bummer.
3. Man, just when I thought that MarathonFoto was a rip-off, to download pics from my race last weekend is $18 per freakin’ picture. FOR A LOCAL RACE.
4. For all my fellow Goop haters: Is Gwyneth Paltrow full of shit? Science says yes. And I especially love said scientist calling out detoxes as “fancy anorexia.” {via Think Progress}
5. Hold the carbs, please. {via NYT}
6. On the tireless consumption of foodies. OOOOOH BOY, do I hate the word “yummers.” {via The Baffler}
7. We’re booked on next year’s Rock Boat XVII!
the week:
The long weekend and a face punch of allergies really did a number on me this week. I’m trying to reserve all the energy I can harness for my race this weekend. And deal with all these patchy dry spots on my face from the excess rubbing, dripping, and tissue chafing (WTF?!)
weekend:
Saturday morning, I’ll be running my first race in Iowa — and my fifth half marathon — Dam to Dam. Tonight after work I had to drive downtown to pick up my bib and free swag. I’m still not downtown a lot, and I have zero clue which streets are one ways (let alone having any idea how to enter the parking ramps), but I did it all by myself.
And then, chocolate milk. And then and then, Jethro’s BBQ for brunch.
seven things, seven days:
1. I made my first microwave mug cake — it was gluten-free and it was delicious!
2. Oh hey, my job role changed again this week. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
3. Making a goal of wearing my hair down more often and IDGAF if it’s perfect anymore. It won’t ever be, so I’ve just kind of embraced the mess. #growingup
4. Signed up for my first golf lesson!
5. So, hard soda is a thing here. But I haven’t found a brand that’s gluten-free. WHOMP.
6. As I’m making sure that I’m properly hydrated for race weekend: How much water do you REALLY need?
7. Holy cow, I need to wake up at 4am tomorrow. -_-
the week:
Friday’s Weekly Therapy was disrupted by OUR FIRST IOWA VISITORS!
weekend:
The boyfriend’s parents spent the holiday weekend with us, and we explored some fun things in Des Moines — the Downtown Farmers Market on Saturday and Iowa Cubs game on Sunday were big highlights. We definitely crossed a few items off of our Iowa Bucket List!
I get an extra (unpaid, unfortunately) day off today, and we’ll be spending our free afternoon on the golf course with some friends. I’M DRIVING! 😉
It looks like the rain is holding off until tomorrow, too — yay!
the week:
I had two full days of training at work, so my week just FLEW by!
And, YAY! I got a new bike — 600+ miles of Iowa trails, here we come! We also signed up for our first group trail fun ride in June — the BACooN Ride (where BACON meets the Raccoon River Trail) — so I am fully outfitted and ready to explore.
weekend:
We live in a front license plate state, so I need to take my car in this morning to get my front plate mounted. The dealership is also charging us an OUTRAGEOUS amount of money to update the maps on my GPS (like, holy shit, they’re sticking in an SD card WHY CAN’T A SATELLITE DO THIS). All I’m saying is that it sure as shit better locate my house when it’s uploaded.
ANYWAYS.
Otherwise, we have a pretty laid back weekend. Last night we got to hang out with our neighbors for a bit because it was SUCH a beautiful night. I’m pretty jazzed about the weather report in general this weekend, and we’ll probably go for a bike ride.
seven things, seven days:
1. My workplace has a corporate library, which we can reserve from a great selection of business-themed and popular book titles. And they deliver it right to my desk!
2. Everything is SO GREEN right now, including the farm crops around us. Daily, I just feel so happy with where I live.
3. I finished Leah Remini’s Troublemaker — it was a really engaging story, with all the gossipy celebrity juice you’d expect from someone who attended Tom Cruise’s wedding. I’m obsessed with the Scientology survival stories, and it’s a pretty incredible read from someone who went into the church so young.
4. Man, I just had another awful online shopping experience with a furniture company that I love and have shopped with for over a decade (AND have their dumb store credit card). Needless to say, I have to now find another living room side table somewhere else. #grumpy
5. Oh, HEY! Roller derby article in Shape magazine: How Roller Derby Helped Me Finally See Myself As An Athlete
6. The unhealthy truth behind “wellness” and “clean eating” {via Vice}
7. Spinning: You’re doing it wrong {via Indoor Cycling Association}
