I was a runnin'

OK, so I don't really like to 'toot my own horn', but I had to write and tell you of my latest accomplishment. I ran another 5K race on Sunday. It was part of a national series of 13.1 half marathon races that have a 5K portion as well. There weren't as many people in this 5K as the past couple I ran this season, in fact there were only about 300. But I'm happy to say I placed first in my age category. That's right the gold medal! The best part was I decreased my time by over a minute from last race. I ran the 3.1 miles in 25:05 and my pace was 8:13 per mile. I was actually the second fastest woman in anyone my age or younger. It was a chilly morning on South Beach, but we ran the last mile right along the water on the boardwalk and watched the sun rise, which was so cool. The Miami portion of the series had a latin theme (of course) so afterwards there was a live salsa band and dancers, free beer, free arroz con pollo (traditional chicken & rice dish), latin dancers welcoming us across the finish line, latin music played along the whole course. Nothing like a chacha blaring at 6:30 am! My co-workers gave me a 'medal ceremony' the following day and we sang the national anthem! Compared to the other races, it really wasn't that big of a deal, but at least I keep improving! And I know if anyone was chasing me, they would have to run fast to catch me! Or do I want to be caught...hmmmm...:-)

http://www.splitsecondtiming.com/results/2010/131mb5k.html

My Funny Valentine!

I had been home a couple weeks without going out of town somewhere, which was driving me CRAZY, so when I saw that the long holiday weekend was coming up, I checked on last minute airfare deals to find somewhere to go. Luckily, San Antonio was having a weekend fare so I jumped a plane for a few miles and headed to Texas for the Valentine's & President's Day weekend.

I was met at the airport and whisked straight away to The Alamo Cafe where I welcomed some real Mexican Food! We spent most of the weekend really just hanging out, doing a little Hobby Lobby shopping, Target visits, etc. but mostly just constantly PLAYING with Isabelle. She is a funny little girl with an adult mind and vocabulary. It was a great weekend to spend Valentine's Day with those I love. I was hoping to be there for the new baby to arrive, but she is stubborn already! It was a quick trip but certainly always worth it!

Side note, you'll see I ran another race last weekend. I bettered my time quite a bit so I was proud of that!

alOha!

So I started 2010 with a trip to Kona, Hawaii. There was an Arthur Murray competition event there at the Hilton Waikoloa Village resort, so I made myself 'available' to go. With no real official responsibilities there other than to be unofficially official, I had plenty of time to enjoy the resort and amazing weather. Kona is much different than Waikiki, much more remote and quiet and much less touristy. I spent my mornings enjoying a beautiful run on the island, which was necessary since I spent my afternoons drinking fruity tropical drinks by the pool. Of course I also spent time in the ballroom watching the competition and having fun with friends every night. For me, a tropical locale is what I consider a perfect paradise and this certainly fit the bill. It would have been better if Matthew McConaughey would have been sitting next to me, but hey, next time! At least I'm starting 2010 with a tan.

By the way, I have added a new section on the right here of my blog "Running Report". This was suggested by a friend who said it would be cool to keep a log and information about all the places you run over the year. So...I'll try!

Come and Gone...

Another 6 weeks have come and gone...and here is what I have to show for it.

Spent 5 days in Hawaii for an event and luckily it was over my birthday weekend. So I stayed an extra day and enjoyed the beautiful scenery, weather, beach, etc. It's the one day a year I usually 'relax' and I literally sat on the beach under an umbrella for hours. The water was so warm I even spent time wading. I had dinner with friends that evening and it surely made for a nice celebration. I enjoyed my morning runs along the beach watching the sun come up, and of course watching the sun set each evening in Hawaii is the best in the world.

Once the celebration was over, it was back to the grind. Luckily my trip to Mexico City was cancelled this year, so it was just 10 days of 10 hour work days until I left for Superama in Las Vegas. This event is always a lot of prep work as well as a lot of work during the week. That's why it was 'necesssary' that my mom attend the event as well as my helper. I couldn't have done it without her as she was very good to take my directions and run with them. Alex was also there for the International All Star Tournament finals, (as well as celebrating her 1year anniversary), so it was a family ordeal. The event was great, but after a week in Vegas I was ready to come home.

But I wasn't home for long, 48 hours later I got back on a plane and headed to Puerto Rico. This event is always a stress reliever for me after the long Vegas week. The work isn't extremely difficult and it is a beautiful resort on the beach, so I sneak in some lounge time at the pool. The lobby of the hotel is also an event in itself as there are live salsa bands each night and locals come to dance and drink and party. Needless to say, after some salsa myself each night, I didn't get much sleep here, but had a fun time.

I went from 80+ degrees to 30 degrees in just a short few days as I headed to Utah for the BYU event. From my tanktop and shorts to a wintercoat and gloves, crazy! It happened to snow while I was there so I got my fill of winter weather very quickly. It was beautiful scenery as always and I enjoy the time on campus in 'happy valley'. It is a good rejuvination for me at this time of year as I'm starting to get run down and still have plenty left to do. I was glad to see Gma and Gpa & Janice and Hal for lunch, but was also glad to leave the cold. I'm a sissy, I admit it!

So now I'm in Chicago between flights on my way back to the warm. I leave for Columbus though in 3 days so I'm afraid there is more cool weather in my future. Knock on wood I haven't been sick through all of this traveling. Perhaps I'm just waiting to get sick until I'm home at Thanksgiving and my mom can take care of me?! Time to board the next plane...

ARIGATO!

Once again I am sitting in the Admirals Club and have some time to spare between flights so I can update my travel log. I just flew into LAX from Tokyo. It has been quite a quick trip, which perhaps is ultimately going to help my jet lag. I never really had time to adjust. We'll see tonight if I'm able to go to sleep though. I left Friday morning early with a short flight to Dallas, then a long 13+ hour flight to Tokyo. I ate three times on the flight, watched 4 movies, worked on my computer, read a book, stood for an hour in the area next to the restrooms, slept for about 4 hours. Luckily I was in first class so the seat layed down flat into a bed and I could actually get some sleep. I didn't say one word to the man sitting next to me the entire time, a typical Tara tactic.

I arrived in Japan 1 day and three hours later than I left. So the entire time I was there I felt like I was really sending messages from the future back home. My own little 'Lost' moment. My first impressions of Japan were of great organization, order, respect, cleanliness, and very friendly. Something as simple as standing at baggage claim, the people stand behind a red line and then when they see their luggage step up to get it, no pushing, no talking, no loud noises. I took a bus limo to the hotel in Shinagawa area which was about 1.5 hours ride. We passed Tokyo Disney on the ride and I saw the castle, matterhorn, space mountain right there in Japan. I fought hard to stay awake on the bus ride because it was really the only time I got to SEE Japan, even though at this point it was 13 hours ahead of Miami time. The country was green and lush and a lot of farm land.

Once I checked into the hotel, I went straight to bed. I felt bad, like I should be out exploring, but I literally couldn't keep my eyes open. So I was sleeping at 6:30pm, woke up at 10:30 pm, read a while, went back to sleep, woke up at 2:00 am, called my mom, slept until 5:30 am, got up and read for a while until the sun was up and I could go for a walk. I ventured out through the community, and found myself at the train station area where there was a little coffee shop right next to McDonalds. So I sat for a long time drinking a mocha and watching the people come from the train station. So interesting to watch all of these people just living their life half way across the world from me, no matter what or where, we are all the same. What isn't the same is the McDonalds menu, they are all hot dog value meals! Hot dogs everywhere! After wandering through the shops a little I headed back to the hotel, took a bubble bath and got ready for the day. The day was spent mostly in the competition, coordinating with our photographer, etc.

OK, gotta get to the next flight, will finish this later with photos!

OK ready to finish...
The event was quite exciting, as the USA won the World Championship title for the first time! (our couples took 1st and 3rd) I think I was actually the only American there other than the two couples, so it was kinda fun to cheer on the champions! I spent some time after the event writing the report to be posted immediately on-line and getting pictures from our photographer. We relaxed a little at a little cafe before heading to bed. My flight wasn't until 4pm the next day, but I only slept 3 hours and was up at 6am again. So I went for a walk again, enjoyed sitting at the coffee shop watching people go by, walked through the gardens around the area and took my time getting packed and ready to go. I took the bus back to the airport, with the new world champions, and found out we were on the same flight. So we enjoyed relaxing in the JAL club in the airport (which was EXTRA NICE with a full buffet and bar and massages, etc.) then got on the plane for a 10 hour flight to LAX. Luckily they were more tired than I was and we all slept about 8-9 hours of the flight!

I took another 5 hour flight home while Katusha (world champ) went to see her sister on Dancing With the Stars in LA. (Anna dancing with Michael Irvin) We had sat in the club and watched them practice live through webcam on the computer that morning, so it was interesting to see it happen on TV that night.

It has taken me a whole week to feel 'normal' again. Luckily I wasn't there long enough to really get my time converted, just long enough to feel a little confused. I'm heading to Hawaii now though on Tuesday and going 6 hours the OTHER direction in time. So I just have to sleep when and where I can, which is usually on a plane! This was a cool experience though and one I wouldn't trade, even with the craziness of it all!