Holy crap, I've moved to Savannah!

I'm one of those people where it takes a while for things to really sit in. Today, I finally completed all my IKEA projects and unpacked all my boxes. A little clean up and my apartment is finally MY apartment. It's not a partially moved in place that resembled a hotel.

But it also means that I'm finally settled in and it's finally  hitting me that I'm now living in Savannah. I was petting Turtle this afternoon, thinking that I needed to take her to the hot veterinarian and realized that I would no longer be seeing him (or the pictures of his five sons and wife) anymore.

And then I got my first "regular" Friday email from Ashley (who likely never reads this blog) updating me on all the fun that I've been missing at work and stories from Lexington.

Having unpacked and finally having a moment to breath... it means that I actually have a moment to breath and think that I've made such a huge change in my life. I'm living in a new city where I know no one. OK, that's not exactly true. I know four people, one kid, and one dog. All in my apartment complex.

So  there's really nothing I can do now but enjoy it. I have two days to relax and then on Monday I drive up to Charleston to check in at the Mother Ship. Tuesday is my first day at my new work with my new coworkers.

If you hear a little fear, sadness, and nervousness in this blog, then you're astute. I guess you can say that it's normal considering that I've up and moved myself to a new city where I know no one.

Only... my parents arrive next week! They'll be in Hilton Head for two months vacationing - planned a year before I even knew that there was a job opening here in Savannah.

Running Around Savannah

I feel like the last week has been nothing but running around - first packing everything up and moving to Savannah and the past couple days here in Savannah. I drove to Savannah on Saturday and it was a relatively easy drive. It took Zoe (dog) 2 hours to relax enough to lie down as she's just a nervous nelly. But Turtle (cat) was pretty laid back.

Sunday was one of the most boring days I have ever experienced. I headed to the beach pretty early thinking I may have some trouble finding a parking place. I bought myself a small beach chair and a bogey board. Yes, I'm 5 years old. However, I'm the 5 year-old who is enjoying herself in the ocean everyday. I'm unabashedly being a kid about this!!

After 4 hours, my skin was beginning to burn so I headed home around 1:00 pm. And I had NOTHING to do. I've read about 5 books in the past week and finished 2 seasons of Gilmore Girls. So I headed on out to beautiful downtown Savannah. It was raining a bit but still checked out a few squares and a knitting store. Then headed to another knitting store where I met my new best friends: Glenda and Linda (?) - I'm so bad with names! They were super nice and their store was perfect! I have found my knitting home!

Monday was crazy busy... the ReloCubes showed up at 9:30, the mover (note the singular despite the fact that I paid for 2) came at 10:45, the washer and dryer were delivered at 12:15 and the cable guy set up my internet and TV at 2:45. I spent the rest of the afternoon unpacking. I'm pretty much done with the kitchen and living room. But I still have soooo much more to do. Thus the procrastination.

Today I felt like a chicken with my head cut off. I headed to the DMV for a new Driver's License and the tag agency for a new license plate. I found out I was missing a whole bunch of documents for the license. And that I was missing my car registration. As in, I don't have it in my car. As in, what the hell?? So I came home, printed off a form, went to the bank to have it notarized, and sent if off to the Fayette County clerk's office so that I can get that registration in the next couple of weeks. I returned to the DMV office with all my documents... only to find out that I was missing my Social Security Card. I headed to the Social Security Administration office to find that their line was even longer than the DMV. So I headed to Office Depot to see if I couldn't print off some documents to make the DMV happen. Nope, just didn't work out. And I just wasn't willing to make another trip home.

Instead, I went shopping! I got my hair cut, found a new sofa (and a new friend, Nick, who's going to get me 25% off my new sofa!), picked up some new things for my apartment, and made a new friend at the liquor store. It just so happened that he was needing a new Driver's License as well. So I whipped out my DMV requirements check list and had a little chat with him. I also got my parking pass for the beach - non-stop bathing, bogey boarding, and pestering the seagulls!!!

People in Savannah are amazingly friendly. My neighbor, Jerry, was the first to come visit. He's a veteran from the National Guard (although was active duty for 6 years.) He goes to the VA in Charleston to see his therapist. Then Peggy came to introduce herself. She's been living here for 2 years and has two happy (but sweet!) pups who had a field day barking at Zoe at 6 am. And then there's Mary who stopped me in the driveway to ask for my boxes and gave me her card. Everyone says hello when they walk by you - even in the city!!

Now I'm procrastinating by writing this blog. Tomorrow will come soon enough. DMV will be my first stop and then I'll be back to set up my new IKEA furniture and put away the rest of my things.

Thanks for reading and don't feel shy about leaving a comment!! Just saying...

A Great Sendoff from Lexington

The past week has been really focused on packing up and leaving Lexington. As I write this morning, I'm sitting in a very empty office - the diplomas on the walls are gone, the books packed up, and all personal items have disappeared into moving boxes. The only thing that remains is a small rug which I'm tempted to just leave behind...

Last Friday, my co-workers took me out to my favorite Italian restaurants - Belle Notte - the site of many work-related celebrations. And it was a great dinner. Between the wonderful glasses of Chateau Saint Michelle Riesling (yummy!), the tasty cake you see below, goodbye gifts, and a wonderful presentation on how Savannah is just not as great as Lexington. It was a clever attempt at reminding me and try and convince me to stay in Lexington. It did give me some second thoughts...again...

It tasted as good as it looked!

But alas, the plans are in place and changing my mind is very difficult at this point.

Saturday was spent packing. Oh, how I hate packing. I don't mind unpacking - watching my apartment take on a personality is so much fun - but seeing all of my personal items disappear... it's just sad. My apartment is just sad. And it is amazing how many muscles that are utilized in packing that never get used otherwise. I could barely move Saturday night. I had only one night for recovery as the slushy ride was planned the next day.

Slushy Ride, you ask? As it really does deserve capitals. Yes, the Slushy Ride. It's a bike ride that starts at our coach's home and goes out to Boyd's Orchard, around a 25 mile bike ride in all. I met the Team in Training crew near my home (cutting down the mileage a little) and headed out to Boyd's where they have... wait for it... slushies!!! Their peach slushy is the best thing for recovery from the hilly ride out there.

Boyd's orchard with the TNT crew

While I was huffing and puffing my way up and down the hills of Kentucky, there was a lot of nostalgia. I was thinking about how the beauty of the countryside of Kentucky, the hills which I learned to love, and the runs that I conquered along the route. I'm really going to miss this place.

Coming to Kentucky, I was finishing up my last year of school (internship) and beginning to look forward towards my career. Now, six years later, my career is strong and going well and I have a life outside of school. I have had so much support from the wonderful people at work and the great friends I've made through Team in Training. I have grown so much.

So the next chapter of my life begins soon. My apartment will be packed into the ReloCubes this evening. Zoe (dog,) Turtle (cat,) and I will be heading down to Savannah on Saturday to move into our new apartment. I'll be 15 minutes from the beach and 15 minutes from downtown Savannah. I have a second bedroom which I hope will be well utilized by all the friends I've made in Lexington. And all you old friends... yeah, you're invited, too!!

New adventure in Savannah

So my big news lately is my sudden and somewhat unexpected move to Savannah, Georgia. I've been thinking about moving for a while now. Lexington has been a somewhat temporary home. I have thoroughly enjoyed living in Lexington. It has a great atmosphere, lots to do, and I have met the most wonderful people. I have to say that I really grew both professionally and personally while in Lexington. I finished up my Ph.D., started my career, and jumped into being in charge of the internship there. All while I trained and completed my first half marathon and triathlon. Looking back, I think I will always have very fond memories of Lexington.

I feel incredibly comfortable in Lexington. I have good friends. I have a hairdresser I like, a vet I trust, a kennel my animals love, and activities that keep me busy. So, what else could I possibly want?? Lexington has never felt like home. I'm not sure Savannah will be like home, but I know that Lexington isn't. I want to push myself again and try something new in a new place. And I want to be closer to my family.

I'm currently sitting in the airport at the Lexington airport on my way to Savannah for the first time. I've never been there!! My parents have vacationed in Hilton Head and I imagine that Savannah has a similar feel. Maybe not... I'll find out soon enough!!

I'll be looking for apartments to rent. It's a new adventure and I'm pretty darn excited. It's going to be hard to leave Lexington behind but I am looking forward to something new!!!

Have I mentioned I hate running?

I've been a swimmer for as long as I can remember. My mom had me in the pool at the local YMCA for Mom and Tots when I was still an infant. By the time I was a teenager, I was teaching that class. I swam competitively (although I wasn't the best) until I as about 14 or 15 years old when I fell out of love with swimming. I had gained a little weight and found boys.

A few years ago, when I started with Team in Training, I fell back in love with swimming. This morning, I voluntarily jumped into the outside pool at 5:45 am and had a great workout. I had some music playing in my SwiMP3 and watched the sun come up.

I've also had a long love affair with my bike. When I was a kid, my parents allowed me a lot of freedom on my bike. I would ride my bike up and down my road and when I was older, I would ride for an hour into town and then back again. It was a small town and little traffic. So when I bought myself a nice little road bike a couple years back, it took only a few months and I was feeling pretty comfortable on my bike. Now, I look forward to getting on my bike and exploring a little bit more of the Kentucky countryside.

But running... I've never liked running. I dreaded the day in gym in high school when we had to run the mile for the Presidential something-or-other. I don't remember ever owning sneakers for running in my childhood. When I began training for 1/2 marathon 3 years ago, I thought I was crazy. My family and friends thought I was crazy. But I trained for more than 4 months, running about 3 times a week. And I grew to really enjoy it. I got into a rhythm that I enjoyed. I was (am!) slow as molasses, but I could run 6 or 7 miles without too much difficulty.

Then I developed plantar fascitis. Not only did I stop running but I also had to cut back on the biking. I made trips to the podiatrist and the physical therapist. In the end, losing weight was the trick to improving my two feet. And now I'm back in the game.

So tomorrow, I'm getting up early to hit the road at 5:00 am. Running in the morning is the easiest - it is cool and dark. I can hide my slow ass in the darkness and get lost in the songs on my iPhone. While I don't necessarily dread getting out there and running, I certainly don't look forward to it. But I wonder if half the reason is because I don't run very quickly. It's my weakest sport and I hate feeling that weak.

So, when you wake up tomorrow and get ready for work, think of me. I've taken a couple steps towards improving my run time. Maybe I'll even like running again one day. Maybe I'll even get faster!

So now what?

I'd been working pretty hard towards the Irongirl Atlanta. It's been a couple weeks now and I've spent them thinking about what to do next.

I did decide to sign up for a local triathlon in just over a week. The Markey Race for Women's Cancer - the money goes to the local Cancer Center associated with the University of Kentucky. It's a sprint race - 400m, 13 mile bike, 3.1 mile run. I've volunteered at this race for the past two years - it's time to go for it myself.

However, I haven't run since the tri almost three weeks ago. I just don't like to run. I really enjoy swimming and have really fallen in love with cycling. I was able to enjoy running while I was training for the half marathon I did a few years ago. But with plantar fascists plaguing me and my hip that always hurts after running, it hasn't been much fun.

So... my focus this summer, I think, is going to be running. Yeah, I know... I just got through telling you how much I'm not loving it right now. It's clearly my weakest sport (and the slowest.) So it really is the one that I think I should focus on. I mean, I don't need to train for another half, but maybe get my mileage up to 4 miles and really focus on brick workouts. For those of you not fluent in tri-speak, a brick is when you pair two of the tri sports back-to-back. Like swim to bike. Or bike to run. It's the latter that people really struggle with (meaning me!)

I'm following a 12-week Olympic triathlon plan starting last week. There's an option of doing three run workouts a week, so I'm going to up the running to three times a week. I'll keep the other two sports to just twice a week. I mean, I love exercising, but it's not my life... well...

Speaking of triathlon taking over people's lives - there are a group of 5 people (and I use that term loosely and you'll understand why in a moment) who completed a 27 hour triathlon. Nope, you did not read that incorrectly. And no, that's not a mistake. TWENTY SEVEN HOURS!! All in the name of bringing attention to the 27 million victims of human trafficking. I watching them finish up Sunday morning. And then they all stuck around for a couple more hours to celebrate. Amazing!!

There was an amazing table set up there from a local boutique selling free trade stuff. I think I bought half the table. And took home a gift certificate for a Road ID (I LOVE their commercials.)

Last plug for the day - take a look at this project! It's a pretty snazzy GPS system for women that's under development. I'm a backer and I won't be charged until they meet their fundraising goal. It looks like a great investment!!

I'll keep you updated on my running escapades!

Irongirl Atlanta Race

Sunday - May 20, 2012

The morning began at 4:30 am. I think I immediately turned to Andrea and asked if we really had to go through with this. The look on her face told me that there was no more sleep in my future! It didn't take long to get dressed and jump in the car. We got to the race site a few minutes after 5:00 am and it took us about 15 minutes to walk from the parking lot up the transition area.

Last year's race was a real learning experience. This year, I bought some extra clothes that I didn't mind leaving behind in order to stay warm. It was so cold last year, that the last thing that I wanted to do is spend 2 hours in the cold again. While it wasn't that cold this year, the clothes still made it more bearable.

My start time was a whole lot earlier than last year, too! The swim was started in waves based on age. It is based on the age you will be for the year. So even though technically I was still 34 years and 364 days old, I raced in the 35 to 39 age group. Which pushed me from last year's number of 1200-something to 593. Which meant a whole lot few people in front of me. Honestly, I think it really changed the way that the whole race went for me.

One of the official photos of the swim start

The swim was out and back around some buoys. My  plan from the beginning was to head out the left of the field for (hopefully) less traffic and an easier swim. It really worked out well for me. I barely had to deal with all the kicking, slapping, and drowning that typically happens at the beginning of the swim.It was the best swim I have ever experienced in a triathlon - relaxed, easy, and enjoyable!!!! Although you can't really tell from the picture, I was really pleased with the swim.

I'm in the back right corner

The transition to the bike was smooth and quick as compared to last year!

My helmet was crooked - apparently for the entire race!

The bike portion was really the focus of my race. Last year, I swam too hard and had trouble moderating my heart rate. So, I ended up walking up a hill pretty early in the bike portion (around 3.5 miles) and then again around 9 miles into the race. This year, my main focus was to RIDE up those hills. I was up the first hill that had given me trouble before I even realized that this was one of the hills!!

As always, there were some people that kept passing me and then I would pass again a few minutes later. One of those was a fellow TouchChik. She rode by and I yelled out "go Tough Chik" and paused before I yelled out "I'm one, too!" is a bit of a smaller and more pathetic voice. I must have passed her at some point because she came up beside me a few minutes later and said "You ARE a Tough Chik." I answered "No, I really am... I just didn't wear the tri top!" We chatted a bit and then all of a sudden, there it was. The second hill.

It was still a doozy. One lady couldn't clip out fast enough and tipped over to the right onto the grass. There were several moments when I didn't think I could do it. Or I would do it but cause a heart attack or stroke. I was huffing and puffing when I finally made it over that second hill. And then there were a few tears. I HAD DONE IT!!! I had a huge smile on my face for the rest of the 9 miles on the bike!!!

See... still crooked!

Next came the run. While I had been running, I had not been practicing the transition from bike to run. BIG mistake. My legs were jello and I just couldn't get them moving right. I slowed down to a walk and ended up befriending a couple of other people walk/running.

A rare good picture of me running

I ran the last mile in to the finish line and was all smiles.

I quickly met up with Andrea and then the Tough Chik I chatted with on the bike course. Her name is Charity and this was her first triathlon!

Happy Irongirls!

This year's results:

Location	Distance	Pace	cTim	Place (O'all/Div)
Swim	536 m (0:16:05 min)	3:03/100/m		242/53
T1	(0:04:32 min)
Bike	19 mi (1:15:16 min)	15.1/mph		432/85
T2	(0:03:00 min)
Run	3 mi (0:39:39 min)	13:13/mile		912/167
Finish	(2:18:32 min)

Compare this to last year's results:

Location	Distance	Pace	cTim	Place (O'all/Div)
Swim	(0:14:23 min)
T1	(0:06:54 min)
Bike	19 mi (1:31516 min)
T2	(0:03:56 min)
Run	3 mi (0:47:53 min)
Finish	(2:44:57 min)

I believe that the swim was a bit longer this year than last year as everyone's times went up. I also really tried not to go out hard but rather use it as a warm-up and to relax.

ALMOST 30 MINUTES OFF MY OLD TIME!!!!!

Needless to say, I'm really happy. Super happy. So excited about doing triathlons now!!! THIS is the reason people race. I get it now!!