training: a revised approach......drink beer and pedal

So I've come to it again, status-post crossnats in Bend. I've decided I need a goal for the upcoming new year. Taking into account the failure of my previous years plans to compete in the Athena Queen of the Universe race at the Cross-nats Blowout Bash, I've modified my approach. BTW, those bitches were fast and it was way dark and they were downing PBR's at the start line! I would have crashed coming down the flyover in the first lap (a.k.a. ten feet from the start).

Not to say my inability to race cyclocross was an excuse for my failed training attempts, it was in fact a sidenote. My training was merely a focus for me, a way to channel my desires to get into better shape and be alot more bad ass. And let's face it, my vertical leap has never been anything close to impressive and the bar was too high for me to reach so this year I have opted for a more linear leap, a close analysis of my strengths and weaknesses and subsequent honing of these things and all toward a specific goal.

So here it is, I'm gonna race the Ashland Super D(or newly titled Ashland Mountain Challenge), I like the old name better and it will be henceforth referred to as that. Anyhow, we have gone to this race for the last few years and Erich has always raced. We go up the night before, Erich pre-rides the course, then we spend the night on top of mt. ashland. It's a great race and from what I here, a great course to ride. I'm gonna find out for myself! Why not? I have a badass yeti that is just asking to be ridden and I have never been in a race before. So this year, the thirty-first year of my life, I will race. I don't care if I win or even come close to it, I just want to finish and preferrably not severely injure myself. :)

As for training, I'm going to follow in the immortal footsteps of world champion dh racer steve peat. Drink beer and ride your bike. That's right folks, I have no intention of trying to cut out anything from my diet at this point, I'm just going to focus of getting fit. As it is, I eat rather healthy. It has been one year since I've eaten fast food (ok, in my book, the occasional in'n'out burger is a legal cheat) and it has been over a year since I quit drinking soda! I drink lots of water and try to cook as natural as possible. I'm not an organic only snob, I like my box of kraft mac'n'cheese on occasion, meat is delicious and I can't afford free-range organic so I eat the regular stuff. So Lord knows there is room for improvement, and room to be gained when trying on my favorite pair of jeans, but I will for now only worry about putting my foot on that pedal and making it up the hill. You gotta make it to the top of the hill before you get to go downhill. Damn, I hate going up hills. :)
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To contentment in a broke-down palace

I am.....content.....at least for the moment. :) I truly am......

the future of two

Yes, we all know I want to move to Bend. I don't think I have to explain that again. The change, the new, the different, it's what I crave right now. (unless my cravings are the misinterpreted tick-tocks of my somewhat latent biological clock)
I have a strong(stubborn) and driven(obsessed) personality. When I decide I want to do something, watch out. So of course, I've been perusing craigslist for rental houses in Bend, taking the next step to get my RN so I can work wherever I want, and talking about our imminent move to anyone who will listen.
Enter the husband. We have been married for two years, together for six.five. We own a home(as much as you can own anything these days), we want to own a bike shop/brewpub someday, we want to eventually buy a place with a couple acres. We never made a plan, we just discussed, and dreamed. Now, I want a plan, a goal, a point in the near future that I can look forward to and work toward. So, of course I've been dropping not-so subtle hints frequently about my sincere interest in moving. Erich, per his usual, doesn't say much, however has expressed that he thinks I'm nuts for looking at rentals when a move wouldn't be possible for at least two years. And lately, I've gotten the idea that he doesn't necessarily want to move to Bend as much as I do. Ok, fine, I can deal with that, because I know that eventually Erich would probably like to move, he just needs time to process. He needs time to process pretty much any decision. That's why he's perfect for me, his deliberate analysis of a given situation nicely balances my tendencies toward impulsivity.
So.......now what?
I guess I move forward with my goal, with the understanding that the compromises of marriage might demand certain addendums to my plan for us.
For instance, we drove home from my parents yesterday and popped over to Whitmore for fun. The drive was beautiful with all the colors of fall. The Fern Rd. property(owned by the in-laws, and offered to us for the construction of what would be my dream home) grabs me everytime I see it, I don't know how, I don't know why but I fall in love with that place everytime we go there. I like projects, I love dreaming up all the things we could do to make that property our own private retreat. Even the thought of clearing brush and tending big burn piles in the crisp fall air makes me excited. And building a house that would be exactly how I wanted it??? My dream come true. Let's do it! (See, impulsive)
I could definitely see that as part of our future. But how about this, let's move to Bend for a few years. Then come back and settle down. Or maybe we don't. Maybe we love Bend so much that we buy a place up there and we are just as happy there as we could ever hope to be.
How will we ever know unless we boldly take a step in one of those directions? We have to take a step in some direction....I vote for North.
Or I guess we could just get pregnant. Maybe that would settle me down. :)

I've got my best shoes on, I'm ready to go

I would pack up our stuff and move tomorrow, I would. However, its not that simple when you own a house, when you need to finish school, when you have a life seven years in the making to wrap up into a portable u-haul sized package. I can't stop thinking about moving, I'm craving the new environment, the new community, the new experience. I'm tired of seeing the same things day after day, I'm tired of knowing half of the people I come into contact with, I'm tired of being disappointed because life here doesn't seem to satisfy me anymore. So, let's go, or at least get our feet moving in that direction.

So I'm concocting a to-do list for our eventual move. (I love making lists, I don't usually follow them, but I really like making them.)

1. The purging continues, I'm deciding what things are essential to me, what things I can easily let go of. The "letting go" list is getting rather long. Without even realizing it, I've found myself surrounded by mass market crap that I haven't used, let alone looked at since we moved in to this house. So, it goes out the door. There's still plenty of stuff left over, let me tell ya! And it's all really dusty....so I bought a can of pledge. Consolidating when the house is somewhat clean seems easier.

2. Need to get my RN. I love being a nurse but the fact is, being an LVN means you get less pay and work harder(in alot of cases) than your RN counterparts. Not to mention, there is a lack of respect when they see LVN on your name badge. So, today I submitted my application for re-enrollment at Shasta College. I need to take Microbiology, then I'll be eligible for the upgrade-program to get my RN. This should take approximately three semesters. I really hope there is no waiting list, other-wise, I'll have to explore other options. Once I put my mind to doing something, I don't like waiting. Maybe I'll commute to COS in Weed. That wouldn't be so bad, right?

3. Save money, pay off bills, conserve my resources! I am horrible at saving money, always have been. The fact is, moving, even if it's local, is expensive. I would like to have at least $5000 in our savings. Right now, I have $200. EEP! This will be the hardest thing to do for me, I am a spender. I'm gonna need some back-up. That'll be Erich's job, frequent reminders and possibly physical punishment if I can't control myself. :)

4. Learn to play my fiddle. This will be a good distraction and deterrent from spending money or wasting all day looking at rentals and job postings on bend's craigslist. I will also start crocheting again and try to diminish my extensive collection of yarn. Craft therapy and purging all in one.

Ok, this is a good start.......let's get to it.

Anniversary-trip Inspired Purging

We just returned from probably the best trip we have ever taken together. 8 days of stress-free, beer-drinking, ridgetop-camping bliss. It was really exactly what I needed. I returned yesterday thinking of a few things:

1. I love Bend. I want to move there. We spent only a few hours of our trip there but the majority of our trip within a couple hour proximity and it felt amazing. I don't know what it is....but I want to move there and find out. :)

2. If in fact moving was on the agenda, how much crap could I get rid of......the answer is: ALOT. Today I dropped three giant trashbags full of clothes and one box full of shoes off at the salvation army without even batting an eyelash. There is more where that came from. Stuff I haven't used in over a year, tossing it. Stuff we haven't unpacked since we moved into our house three and a half years ago, tossing it. I don't need all this clutter in my life. Period.

3. With this new outlook, I feel like I need to get rid of some crap from body as well. I read my fat flush book today and am contemplating doing the two-week jumpstart crazy plan but I'm just not good at diets. So I think instead I should cut out the beer for awhile , and try going dairy-free and as sugar-free as possible. That's a good place to start for me.

Purging is fun....what else can I get rid of?

Tired of feeling sorry for myself, or something along those lines

Seriously, WTF? What is wrong with me. Ever since Amy moved I've been in a funk. I miss her....but holy cow, why the depression-like slump I've sunk into? I hate this. I need to get myself going again, kickstart my motor. So today, I'm going to do yoga, I'm going to clean my kitchen, and I'm going to wake up. I have to.....I need to find my happy again. I can't keep focusing on all the things I wish could be and start focusing on all the wonderful things that are. I need fresh eyes, the ones I've been looking through are tired and jaded. Here I go.........

In the immortal words of Reel Big Fish...

everything sucks. Idaho sucks, my sister sucks, the hot fucking summer sucks, our broken a/c sucks, money-sucking cars and houses suck. I could go on, but I won't. And "this is gonna be the last time you hear my complain".....but probably not.

BEND CYCLOCROSS NATS 2010

My enthusiasm is renewed! Why you ask? Found a fabulous house to rent in Bend, and am in the process of booking said fabulous house for the upcoming festivities!!!! WOOHOO! The house we rented last year was perfect with one exception, it wasn't pet friendly. We still brought the linkster and she went unnoticed, but I figured a pet friendly house would be a better choice, thank you VRBO! I freaking love that website!


Anyhow, my previous goal of weight loss has been a slow process with many moments of weakness on my part, but with summer approaching and the heat looming I am excited about the plethora of vegetables and salads and ice cold beer. Oh wait, I'm not supposed to be excited about the beer....dangit. I can't help it, I love the stuff! Back to my point, I'm trying, really I am. And I have to say, even though I have only lost a few pounds, I feel better. I might not make it to my goal, but I will continue on nonetheless.

On a sad note, my sister is moving to Ida-fucking-ho. And she talked me into making a freaking facebook page. DOUBLE GRRRR!

I am obsessed

My new brewing hobby has taken over my life and I haven't even brewed my first batch yet! I seriously can't stop reading, collecting equipment, drooling over beer. I have been thinking about it so much that my one beer a week thing has totally flown the coop. I can't help it! When all you think about is making beer, all you want to do is drink it! :) I'm trying to be good, really I am. But that's not working out for me so well right now! Ok, so tomorrow I"m going to brew my first batch. Maybe I can make it back to my scheduled one a week until my homebrew is ready to drink. Of course, our trip to Portland approaches rapidly and I should probably train for that, so I can enjoy all of the fine microbrews that Portland has to offer! Oh, the dilemma! I must ponder....

Training: Day uh....39. Procurement

OMFG! I am so freaking excited!!!! So we got our tax return and decided we would use half to pay down a credit card I have from when I was in nursing school, and the other half we would split and use as we pleased. Erich's choice was a no-brainer: he's been drooling over the new boxxer since before it came out but he had no dh bike to put it on, well, now he has a pretty sweet Turner that needed some front-end love, so the boxxer should be here today. (I fully support the dialing-in of this bike as it totally fits me and when Erich buys a new Turner in a year or two, I will be assuming ownership of the Turner.:)
My choice however has taken a twistier path. I'm turning 30 in two months, eep. I want to get a 3/4 sleeve on my Left arm as I have been saving it for something fantastically special. Well, I've decided what that entails and am aching to get tattooed again, so that seemed the logical choice for the spending of my money, plus, support the local economy and a good friend of mine. Oh, that would be Kip Delaney owner of Victory Tattoo in Chico, CA. (I trust him with the one and only canvas God has given me in this life and he's never let me down) Ok, so tattoo it is.
Then I happened to be perusing Craigslist. We are, I should say Erich and the FIL are re-building our back deck and some guy had listed a whole bundle of redwood so I was checking it out. (I love bargains) And lo and behold, there it was. Posted mere minutes before I saw it, "Homebrew Equipment $750". The list of equipment was exhaustive and before I knew it, my fingers were flying across the keyboard emailing with questions about his setup. I received a response within hours and was even more stoked as I read his knowledgeable and in-depth answers to my queries. This guy knew what he was doing and had a fantastic set-up that had been cared for with love. I made arrangements to meet with him yesterday, yeah so the stupor bowl was on but who freaking cares? I'M GONNA BREW BEER! We drove up to Mount Shasta and can I just say my face almost split in half from the smile that was plastered on it as I stared into his garage at the gigantic spread of equipment. We loaded the truck and it was completely full, and that was no small feat let me tell you. He even gave me his recipes and a ton of adjunct barley and hops that he had not used. Sweet Jesus, I've died and gone to heaven.
And to top it all off, my dad sprung on me last time he was here that he had procured his own brewing equipment from someone he knows, he wouldn't tell me what he got or anything! So now, it's on like donkey kong. The gauntlet has been thrown. MWAHAHAHAHA, I will emerge victorious! Plus, I took that new job so I'll be working 3 twelves a week, that's right people, four days off! And if I work a few shifts at my old job per diem, that's all the extra flow I'll need to support my new endeavor. Oh, snap. Watch out, it has begun.:)

Training day 25; employment and stomach flu

Eck....so lately I've been feeling like shit. My job, as much as I love it, has been a complete drag and really wearing on my psyche. I have been the epitome of stress and have been so pre-occupied with all of the things bouncing around in my brain that I have had little time for well, anything. Then on top of that, my feeling like shit turned into a more physical manifestation. I don't know if it's food poisoning or the stomach flu, but this is day two of some serious stomach rumble and accompanying destruction. However, I see the light at the end of the tunnel: I applied for a new job a couple of weeks ago, and got the call today that they wanted to hire me. I am totally stoked! Not only will I be a real nurse actually taking care of patients instead of just passing meds all day, but I will be working 12 hr shifts 3 days a week, that's right, 4 days off!!! Holy MOLEY! Whatever will I do? heehee. Well, for a while I will probably pick up some extra shifts, stay on at my old job per diem and keep the doors of opportunity open. I just feel a great weight lifted off of my shoulders. I had been debating in my mind for the last two weeks about whether I should go to this new job or stay at my old one because there were so many factors involved, and I honestly couldn't have told you two days ago what I was going to do. But when he called this AM and said they wanted to hire me, I felt ecstatic and I knew I had to accept. So no more stress!
Now on to more training related things, it has been raining wicked hard for it seems like forever, ok I think it has been a little over a week. But not exactly enticing for one so wimpy as myself. So today, Erich and I cleaned out the garage, mostly so he could pull in the Mini and do the brakes, but also so we can set up the trainers and get some pedal on.
Ok, I guess I should confess: last week, I had more than my alotted one beer. In fact, I had approximately 5 beers over the week. I chalk it up to stress, I have no excuses, I'm not sorry, but perhaps I am now reaping the consequences. On a bright note, I had a pint of Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout at Carnegies that was fantastic! More like coffee than any beer I have ever had, and so delicious. Dark and lingering, it lasted me at least the time it would take to drink two or three lighter beers. And it is the memory of that delicious beer that I will carry with me through the end of this first month of training. Until next time, cheers!

Training: Day 15!!!! Two weeks down *hi-five*

Sheesh, busy week. Work, bleh. No time for riding the trainer this week, I hate how work and the stresses that go with it can totally obliterate your time for fun sometimes. Long story short, work has been totally crappy and I applied for a new job, but now I'm rethinking leaving where I'm at because things are working themselves out, as they usually do. Anyhow, I've stayed strong with my main resolution during these trying times: I have abstained from my fave beverage (with the exception of my one a week rule:) I've been doing fairly well on the diet also. Still going strong on the no soda, no fast food. Ok, gotta cut this short, we're gonna take Linka for a walk so she doesn't terrorize the cat all night.:) Peace.

Addendum to the most embarassing thing ever

So I found out today, our scale at work sucks and is six lbs off so I actually weigh 180 and have 20 lbs to drop in the next 11 months. This is an encouraging thought and seemingly much more attainable! My quest continues on!!!


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Training day 8: chuggin' along

WOW, training week number one, check. So I haven't done a whole lot of physical training this past week, it's been more concentrated on the diet training and non-beer-drinking training, which I have perservered through. I have decided to allow myself one beer a week as a reward for all of my hard work and let me tell you, one beer has never tasted so sweet! My strategy for approaching the one beer scenario: no six packs, that is just temptation, it is too easy to say "I'll just have one more"; the solution: I will buy one 22 oz. bottle of beer and split it with my training partner, we each get a fantastic pint of beer and I know I have to savor that pint because there is no refill waiting at the bar. I think it will work rather well! I had my one beer on the evening of day 6, Anderson Valley's Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout, decidedly one of the best stouts ever made, and Anderson Valley is at the top of my list of favorite breweries. It was delicious. Enough said.
Another victory of week one: the wet dirt smoothie, I am addicted. I have never enjoyed a smoothie so much, it really satisfies my hunger and leaves me feeling full for a significant portion of the day. I have also been faithful to the psyllium husk daily and I've been taking my supplements religiously. I haven't weighed in for week one yet, I will do that today at work, since I refuse to own a scale in my house (I overall object to the idea of weighing one's self as a measurement of success when training or dieting, however because I have a specific weight goal for this training endeavor, I will in fact be weighing myself weekly or possibly bi-weekly.)
Next weeks goal: attacking the bike trainer and spinning my way to a leaner fitter me. More on that as the week unfolds. I better get in the shower.............

Training: day 4. a wet dirt smoothie

Delicious and nutritious, introducing the official training breakfast of the SSLA: the wet dirt smoothie (no actual dirt was harmed in the making of this smoothie, it just looks like dirt or wet dirt aka mud) Oh, you want my recipe? Ok, here it is debuting for the first time ever.

The SSLA Wet Dirt Smoothie

1 blood orange, juiced
1 oz. pure unsweetened cranberry juice
6 oz. water
1 cup frozen mango chunks
2 tblsp. hemp protein, vanilla flavor
1 tblsp. cold pressed flaxseed oil

Blend and enjoy.
This made one overflowing pint glass, which is kind of alot for me,
but would be excellent for splitting with your training partner,
(unfortunately mine is at work this AM).

OH, yeah, you are probably wondering what the SSLA is, well, a few days ago I mentioned the "brainchild" of Erich&Mike that will come to fruition and the SSLA would be said brainchild. More details to come.

Training: day 3. Hot tamales are my weakness

Ok so they are one of my weaknesses, and I am not really sorry. I ate them today and they were delicious! Luckily one of the other nurses loves them too so she significantly decreased my intake. Overall I'm still trucking along, no beer, no fast food, no soda. I've been faithful about drinking my psyllium everyday, sippin my cran-water, and chugging the h2o like it's goin outta style,(consequently I've spent alot of time peeing) and I'm feeling rather good!
On a side note, I got our tickets for muse in the mail and I am so very excited! Happy birthday to me!(oh yeah...footnote: I am turning 30 on April 1 and we are going to Portland to celebrate! I'm sure I'll fill you in more later, oh and this trip is a predestined break in my rigorous training regime because there will be alot of beer drinking and delicious food eating going on!) ok sleep now.


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