It's a new dawn, it's a new day ...

2008 is here, hooray!

Since my last update ...

I had a really wonderful time with Sonya in Chicago. Much of my time there was spent wandering around the city while Sonya was in interviews. There was also deep dish pizza at Gino's East, which was a thing of glorious dripping-with-calorie goodness. I was astounded at the beauty of the Art Institute; Sonya and I rode the El, and I visited Daley Plaza (where they have that new Picasso). I took lots of pictures, which I always find to be a pleasant way to spend the day.

Speaking of pictures, I'm continuing to prepare for shooting Elizabeth's wedding. I'm going to take a LOT of pictures. I'm kind of excited. Also exciting: I won an ebay auction for a 60-year-old Czech camera. It's a twin-lens reflex camera, which should be ... interesting.

New Year's Eve was fun and laid-back. Sonya and I were heading over to a friend's house; we were to arrive at 10. We realized, en route, that
-we had not eaten
-we probably should eat
-with an ever-decreasing window before 10pm, something quick would be good.
In case you were wondering, precious little is open at 9:30 on New Year's Eve in terms of "a quick bite". The winner was Jim's Steak Out. I decided to set aside the diet for an evening, and indulged in a delicious drippy steak sub. The evening was lovely and fun and laid-back. There was a late-night sortie to a bar, which was uninteresting, but we did discover that Wiseguys Pizza is open very late. I decided that the setting-aside of the diet for the night was still in effect, and indulged in some slightly-drunk late night pizza for the first time in a long time. And ooooh, it was good.

I'm back in Canada these days. I'm happy to have found a semi-permanent place up here, which makes traveling much easier. Things are going well, the diet is back on track, and I just went out and ran tonight!

Speaking of the diet, I think I gained six pounds and raised my cholesterol 20 points just reading this. Worst part? It actually .... sounds .... kinda ... tasty!

I'm going to go gnaw on some broccoli now.

The indiscreet part of valor is more fun.

Last night, as I was going to bed, I thought, "You know, I have a lot to do on Sunday, and I tend to let it pile up, frantically do as much as I can on Sunday evening, get to bed late, and then have a rough start early Monday morning. I'd planned on doing the Niagara Habitat for Humanity Christmas run in the morning, but ... perhaps I'll stay home and rest.

But I woke up this morning full of gumption (or something like it) and went off and did it! 4 miles, 38:11. With energy to spare at the end. Yay me! They've been predicting some seriously gross weather, so I was worried. My fears, though, were unfounded -- it was chilly (around 30 F) with a light wind, but certainly not cold, and not a hint of precipitation.

Well, off to do errands...this oil won't change itself!

Giblet hangover

Yesterday was wonderful.

I didn't get to sleep until about 2am -- I kept realizing I had something else to pack up, or put together, or toss in the car, or mix, or blend... and when I finally did get to bed, I was hyper-nervous about the race in the morning.

I got up at 7 (OK, I got up at 3, 4:30, 5:50, 6:30, and 7 -- like I said, nervous about the Turkey Trot), got dressed, and headed out. It was disgusting - raining hard, 36 degrees or so. I got to the race start, and, like everyone else, sheltered under the awnings of nearby buildings, stamping my feet and trying to stay warm. By the start of the race, at 9:00, the rain had tapered off, and the weather was actually pretty decent. I ran 4.97 miles in about 46 minutes, which was much faster than I'd thought possible, It was *great*.


After the run, I came home and showered, then Sonya and I went to Thanksgiving dinner at Lorna's, where Lorna and her mom had prepared dinner for twelve ... despite there only being five of us there for most of the day. We ate, we talked, we watched some of Miracle on 34th St., we ate, we talked, we played with Lorna's wonderfully sweet dog, we ate... At some point, I gave up trying to keep track of food. In terms of "the wagon", I did not fall off the wagon. I made a well-executed three-and-a-half dive in the pike position off of the wagon, deep into sweet, delicious apple pie.

This morning, the scale was expectedly bad to me. But it's OK. I knew I was going to indulge on Thanksgiving; I enjo;yed the hell out of it, and now I'm going to wipe the metaphorical pie from my face and clamber back on the wagon. The only thing I need to decide at this point is whether 25F is too cold to run.

Miscellany

First, a weather update...
I've been watching the weather for Thanksgiving closely, as I'm going to be out in whatever it's doing for at least an hour. On Thursday, I checked: High of 40-50, 50% chance of showers. [hm. An hour's run under grey skies. Yes, I can do that] Yesterday, it was a high of 50, 80% chance of rain [Um. Running in 43-degree rain (it's not going to be up at the high at 9am) for an hour. Well, better stock up on hot chocolate.] Today, it's now "Snow and sleet. Much colder with highs in the mid 30s. North winds 10 to 15 mph." All I can say is that I'm glad I have the clothes for this, and I'm REALLY glad I've been training in the cold. Oh, and I will *so* have earned some serious Thanksgiving eating.

Next, a fitness update:
Sonya introduced me to yoga ... and I'm really digging it. I'm discovering new ways to move my body, and new muscles I didn't know I had. Right now, I'm discovering them by way of them saying "Ow. That was uncomfortable." But still. It's good.

Anyway, off to bed. Much to do tomorrow.