Ragnar Trail Zion 2014

I'm not even sure where to begin writing a recap of Ragnar Trail Zion 2014! Really writing a recap of any relay.

It was an incredible couple of days - despite Mother Nature not really being on our side.

We left early Friday morning after playing a little Jenga with all of our gear in the trunk of George's car. We really didn't think it would all fit, but yeah. we're just that good. :)

Last year, the guy I drove to Zion with took a back route, but this year, we drove several miles through Zion National Park. We didn't stop at all, but I did manage to snap a couple pics from the car window.

Baby, it's cold outside!

Ok. So, maybe not so cold to those of you who live in the northern tundra. Certainly, not MN cold, but it's cold here in Vegas.

Despite the cold, I had one amazing run yesterday morning! It was the kind of run that reminds me of why I love to run. I felt strong. I felt powerful.

Sure, I was dressed like my closet threw up on me.

But, honestly, I think that only made me smile even more.

My intention had been to just test out the ole legs to get a feel for how it was going to go for Saturday's marathon.

Good news! They felt great!! Surely, if I can run 5 amazing miles, I can CONQUER 26.2, right?!

Bad news!! The cold front. Last I heard, it could be in the teens at the start, with the possibility of SNOW!

Secretly, I kind of hope it will flurry a little. Running in the snow is so peaceful and beautiful. Dare I say... I miss it...?

But not the cold. Only the snow.

I just hope it doesn't rain.

Meanwhile, I had a super cute outfit planned. A little more coordinated than yesterday's choice. Depending on how brave I'm feeling Saturday morning, I may need to make some adjustments. :) I know I'll warm up while running, but I also want to be comfy from beginning to end. Sometimes I have such difficulty judging what to wear in coldish weather!

Stay tuned!

If you're not already following me on Instagram, now is the weekend to do so! I'm sure that Katie and I will be sharing lots of photos.

3 more sleeps....

Any last minute tips for cold weather running?
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3TT #2

I really had high hopes for being a great blogger during January when I didn't have any homework, and I was just biding my time until student teaching started. Unfortunately, work has been keeping me busy and I've just been too tired lazy to blog in the evenings.

So, here are at least 3 things that are going on with me this week.

Thing 1 - Less than two weeks until I am in a classroom for student teaching. I am both excited and pretty nervous. I met with my mentor teacher last night. I think we'll get along great and work well together (based on that initial meeting). He teaches 3 sections of 10th grade World History, a section of AP Government, and a section of AP European History. I'll be most active in the World History classes. I get to plan a unit on Latin American history. This is intimidating, yet I am looking forward to the challenge!

Thing 2 - I ran for the first time this morning since Jan 2nd! I tried out my new shoes. They were a little awkward for the first 1/4 mile or so but felt great after that. No knee pain at all during the run; there is a little discomfort right now, though. :-(

Nike Zoom Structure Triax 15

Thing 3 - An Arctic cold front blew in last night. When I left for work this morning it was -11°F. Straight temp. Today's high is forecasted to be TWO whole degrees.  It was so cold when walking the 3 blocks to the bus that the collar of my coat frosted a bit from my breath.

If you were taking a class on Latin American history, what would you like to focus on or hope to learn in the class? How's the weather where you are today?

Gotta Wear Shades

I walked across the street today to grab something for lunch. It was super bright and sunny out, and I, naturally, had left my sunglasses at my desk.

Ultimate bummer.

Many people are complaining about the weather right now.

It's hot.
It's humid.

I actually love this weather.
The sun.
The heat.
The sweat dripping from every pore.

Oh, wait! Scratch that last one.

BUT I'm willing to pay the price of sweat and humidity in order to enjoy the sunshine and the heat.

If I'd had my sunglasses, I'd have totally sat outside to enjoy my turkey wrap.
Instead I returned to my desk and put on my sweater. Damn A/C.

Rainy Day Wednesday

This morning it was POURING when it was time for me to head to work. Since I've gotten a few new followers, let me just say, My commute starts with a 5-7 min walk from my apartment to the free shuttle (thank you UST!) that takes me to downtown Minneapolis. From there I have about a 20-25 min walk to my office building. Minneapolis is awesome because I can walk the entire way inside! I ♥ the skyway system (well, I have to use some tunnels, too). It helps keep me all nice and dry!

Ok, so back to the downpour this morning. It was coming down hard. And heavy.

Oh, and have I ever mentioned my absolute distaste for umbrellas? I've never found one to be particularly effective, and I usually end up getting pretty drenched. It's totally possible that this is partly user error. Still, I will use an umbrella if it's just a light rain with barely any wind.

This was not the case this morning. I know it's only a 5 min walk, but a person could really get soaked in just that short amount of time. So, I decided to donn my rain jacket.

Oh, yeah. And my matching rain pants.

I checked it out in the mirror. Definitely dorky.

But I decided I'd rather be dorky than dripping plus I was running late and needed to get out the door pronto, so I slipped into my flip flops and headed out to catch the shuttle.

I snapped this picture in the restroom after getting downtown.
Do you know how hard it is to get a decent self-portrait in a bathroom stall? I took like 15 shots and this was the only one vaguely presentable.
You can even see the beads of water on my jacket!
I was super dry underneath, though! Yeah! They work. :)

I thought it was going to be nasty all day, but I don't think it's really rained much after I got into work.

This is great news for me because 1) I can ball up my rain gear and carry it in my purse (which is what I did during my skyway walk to work. Otherwise, I'd have been super drenched with sweat. Ew.) and 2) I can go for a run when I get home. Only 45 days until my 1/2 marathon!

Is Winter Over YET??

My clothing certainly seems to think so. :)

This past Saturday, the zipper broke on my (3-year-old) winter coat.

This morning, my boots have eaten another pair of my socks.

It just dawned on me today, that the holes in my socks must be from my boots. I have gone through so. many. pairs of socks this winter. It's ridiculous! Now, I've got to either trash them....or learn how to darn socks. Several of said ruined socks I just got this past Christmas from the Ugly Sock Fairy, and I'm just not ready to part with them yet.

Stupid boots!! :P

This is MN, afterall, so, although Spring is nearing calendar-wise, there is still a good chance we'll get more snow this season.

I need new boots, a new coat.
I don't want to buy them, though.
Especially knowing after this one, we'll only have one more winter.
It's so hard to buy new winter stuff knowing it will only get used for one season.
Guess time will tell if I buckle.

At least one post in March? Check!

Come back, fall! I want to bask in your loveliness a little longer.

The weather this fall has been crazy warm! I'll have to check the actual stats later, but to my recollection, it's been one of the nicest, warmest falls.

Most days I've been able to enjoy going outside in T-shirts and flip flops. Jeans, too, of course. That would be terribly inappropriate to go out without them. Of course, many days campus was filled with girls sporting their short shorts. No shorts for me, though. I'd already packed them away for the season.

Anyway, I digress. Let's just leave it at it's been unusually warm. And beautiful.

The leaves paid no mind to the warmth and changed colors and fell to the ground all the same. Actually this added to the gloriousness (is that a word?) of this season.

All this came to an abrupt end a couple days ago.
The temps dropped.
The winds became fierce.
This morning, I awoke to falling snow.

I love the look of snow, and while it's not in the least bit unusual to have snow at the end of October, the fact it's been so unseasonably warm the past few months, makes today's weather unusual indeed.

Mostly I feel jipped of the gradual transition from summer to winter.

My hope for fall this year is gone. :-(
Today I dug out the winter coat and gloves.

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Have you been experiencing unusual weather this fall? What are your predictions for the weather this winter?

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Baby, it's COLD outside!

When I was getting ready for work this morning, the radio kept saying it was 5-degrees outside. Brrrrrr...

So I got all bundled up--winter coat, hat, gloves, scarf, warm clothes underneath--for my 1 block walk to the train. 5-degrees is cold, any way you look at it. My cheeks tingled, and my eyes burned. I don't think it was that windy, just cold, bitter, bitter cold. It's gonna be a fun winter.

Of course, the best part is when I get downtown. I'm all bundled up, remember? Well, I have a 5+ block walk to work. Minneapolis has this incredible skyway system,

so I have the option of walking that 5+ blocks inside. Yeah!

Except....I'm all bundled up for the walk to the train. By the time I get to work, I've generally worked up a pretty good sweat. Today was no exception!

Here's to winter!

Working in the IDS Center

I've spent the past few weeks working on the 39th floor of the IDS Center in Minneapolis. Some of you may not know this, but IDS is the tallest building in Minneapolis. The view out of the conference center is spectacular! You can see for miles! You can see 394 and Lake Calhoun and lots of downtown buildings. Gorgeous!

Today there is a storm brewing. It's incredible to watch the storm slowly making its way into downtown. Less than 5 minutes ago, we could clearly see Lake Calhoun off in the distance. Now it is completely gone...lost in the rain...

The rain hasn't hit downtown yet, but it will very, very soon...

I've never watched a storm come in from up so high.