hey, new york!

Memorial Day weekend I ran my fifth marathon, the Buffalo Marathon in New York. I've had a couple of months to process this race, to reset my confidence, and think about why I love to run and why I want to keep doing marathons. This was a very emotional race for me, but looking back now I can feel proud of my accomplishment and the way I handled the race. Going in to this marathon, I was incredibly excited about two things - running with my friend Kaylan, and finally meeting my goal of breaking 4 hours. I didn't end up meeting that goal, but I DID have another great weekend with friends, exploring a new city, and visiting Houghton.

I spent quite a few hours crying in the days following the race, kicking myself for not being able to meet my goal by thiiiiiiiiiiis much. I was sad, mad at myself, and felt like a loser. Then I began thinking about the events at Boston, about the incredible things my body is able to do that others aren't able to. I am happy I am able to run, I have two legs and strong lungs. A goal not met does not mean I lost - it simply means it's still a goal, and this time the plan was not successful. But a plan can change. I can honestly say I ran the best race I've run, had minimal hip pain (a major success for me), fueled better (and more) than I have in the past, and took 7 minutes off my time in 3 weeks to get a new personal record. I finished in 4:01:02 - 63 seconds past my goal. It's amazing how much those seconds impacted me, but they are just another part in my story, and a reason to keep working hard to get what I want.

It's hard even now to remember exactly how I was feeling most of the race, but I can say one thing: it was FABULOUS to have someone to run with most of the way! This was Kaylan's first marathon, and she rocked it! We are about the same pace, so I was able to stick with her until mile 19 when I was really feeling some hip pain and needed to slow down. I am SO proud of her though..she was incredibly consistent and finished well below her goal time of under 4 hours! We were able to chat and catch up on each others lives which proved to be a great distraction. The miles simply flew by...I didn't even listen to music until well into mile 20, and knowing me I can barely run a mile without tunes.

We started out the weekend with the 11 hour drive up to Buffalo on Saturday, staying at a hotel only a few blocks from the starting line.  Kaylan and her husband John would be arriving late late Saturday night, and we thought it would be best to be close to the start to get as much sleep as possible. It was the first time I didn't have at least a 30 minute drive to a start, and it was sooo nice! It was also great to have a place to shower after we were done! Since we were in Buffalo, we took advantage of the local food for a pre-race meal and visited The Anchor Bar, home of the original buffalo wings. I had eaten there once or twice in college, but AB had never been, so it needed to be done.

The morning of the race was quite chilly - around 45 degrees or so, but with a high of 70 for the day, it was perfect for a race! Nice and sunny with a slight breeze, and the sun helped us warm up quickly. Austin did a great job as usual photographing the day.

 There's no greater joy than seeing our families around mile 17!

 

 The sprint to the finish...

The day of the marathon was also Kaylan's son Finley's first birthday. A year ago this woman gave birth, then trained hard and ran a marathon to celebrate. Incredible!

After the race, Austin and I headed to Niagara Falls to spend the rest of the day. No matter how many times I see it, the beauty and sheer size of it always takes my breath away.

 Monday was Memorial Day, and we started the day with breakfast at a delicious cafe recommended by my friend Margaret. They make their own homemade English muffins that were DA BOMB. Seriously, so so good.

 We then made our way to Houghton, driving along the prettiest country roads that stirred up lots of nostalgia for college days. This little place in WNY will always hold a special place in my heart!

We spent an hour or so walking around campus, checking out all the changes and renovations that had happened since we attended there. I loved going to college at Houghton, but it just didn't feel the same without all our wonderful friends around!

Kaylan and John were very gracious and let us spend the night at their beautiful old homestead in nearby Fillmore. We also got to be there for Finley's birthday party! It was a joy to spend time with them, relaxing and enjoying a beautiful summer evening.

  

We also enjoyed hanging out with their three cats!

It was a great weekend, full of learning experiences, a lot of hard work, good food and great company!

summer.

It's that time of the summer when you are so bored, but you wouldn't want to do anything anyway. The days stretch out long and hot, looking for new adventures and things to discover. Kids run around naked or in cartoon bathing suits, playing in sprinklers and buckets and plastic pools filled with cool water. Weekends are spent at the lake, soaking up the sun on the dock or laughing on a tube pulled behind the boat. Dogs run around the backyard with their tongue hanging halfway out or lazily spread out under the shade of a tree. Skin is itchy with mosquito bites and partially healed sunburn. Runs are taken in the very early morning or the late dusk to avoid the searing sun and humidity. The world feels relaxed, carefree, a little less stressed with the feel of summer, perhaps remembering a sliver of memory from a time spent on summer break, with no agenda, ready to meet each new day with the joy of feeling free.

runner of steel.

Once upon a time, in 2009, I lived in Pittsburgh with my friend and roommate Leanne. We joined an adult kickball league (I KNOW, amazing right?), and met a guy named Nathan who was signed up to run the Pittsburgh Marathon that year. After receiving a request to come out to the course to cheer him on, and maybe run a mile or two (obviously not knowing the rules of marathons), Leanne and I decided to do just that. We laced up our running shoes and set out to find him around mile 15 to cheer and run a mile. And then a mile turned into two. And four, and six, and ELEVEN. I hadn't even run a mile in the three months before the race, let alone eleven. I think the longest I had EVER run was 3 or 4 miles. Nathan appreciated the company so much that we felt bad for stopping, so we ran all the way to the finish line. And even got a medal! Now knowing how illegal and hilarious it was for us to do that, running that day is one of my favorite memories of living in Pittsburgh. We even took pictures with our medals! I know we didn't REALLY run the marathon that year (or even a full half), but the feeling of accomplishment we got from running eleven miles without training was totally worth being ridiculously sore the next day or two. Or five. Looking back, I guess I was destined for endurance!

 
Ever since I discovered my love for running and marathons, I've been thinking about doing the Pittsburgh Marathon to redeem my "fake" medal. I was thrilled when my friend Gina suggested last fall that we do it. She has been my running buddy for three other races, and after completing the Akron Marathon last September, we set our eyes on running the City of Bridges. Gina and her husband Dustin moved to Youngstown, Ohio last year, so any chance to see each other and run a large number of miles is wonderful.

The agenda for the weekend was basically this: do as much relaxing as possible, and run the marathon. Then do nothing some more. One of the best things about visiting Gina and Dustin is the fact that we don't have to be anyone but ourselves. The days usually consist of bumming around in sweats and no makeup, eating delicious food, reading, watching tv, and just relaxing and catching up on the last few months. There's no trying to impress, no fake conversation, feelings of being judged, or being guarded about struggles we are dealing with. It's plain, honest, open friendship, and I love that. It's a rare and beautiful thing.

Saturday was spent in Pittsburgh doing the pre-race necessities of packet pickup and driving the course. The expo was held at the convention center downtown, so we spent a few minutes walking along the river and enjoying the views.

We also drove by the apartment that Leanne, her sister Erin, and I shared when we lived there. It looked exactly the same from the outside. I think it will always be special since it was our first apartment on our own.

Dinner that night consisted of eating lots of carbs at Combine Brothers. They had rolls the size of my head! I also had the most delicious pasta dish I've ever eaten: farfalle with a tomato and cream sauce, baked with three cheeses with a homemade meatball on top! I'm pretty sure each entree was an entire box of pasta. It. was. HUGE!

Sunday was the marathon, and I was positively giddy with excitement. Pittsburgh is my favorite city, and the joy of being able to run on roads and across bridges that normally would be impossible is one of the best things about running to me. I LOVED running around all the places I had visited and seen every day while living in the city. It really made me miss it!

The start of the race was a bit cool, but the high for the day was 72 degrees and mostly sunny, so we couldn't have asked for better weather. The first 5 miles of the race FLEW by, through the streets of downtown and the Strip District, across the first 4 bridges (they were the best part!), and across the river to Southside.

Mile 12 was a long, gradual hill up into Oakland and through the University of Pittsburgh campus, a bit challenging but not nearly as much as I'd prepared for. Miles 14-15 are usually the worst part of a race for me, and this time was no exception. I had felt fine up to that point and ignored taking my fuel properly like I should have, and it caught up with me. I felt my body starting to crash and hit the wall, but a handful of sports beans and a few cups of gatorade really picked me up. Miles 16-19 were great mentally (single digits left!), and though many talk about "hitting the wall" at mile 20, it's really one of my favorite parts of each race since I know I only have 6 left and if I need to I can walk the rest and still finish! Mile 23 was a long gradual downhill back into downtown, and I LOVED IT. I felt like I was flying without having to work at it and was able to make up some time I had lost. Mile 25 was probably my worst mile..my legs and hips felt extremely sore, but the crowd support from 25 to the finish was unreal. There were runners and spectators packed along the course, screaming and cheering and yelling your name (it was printed on your bib number). It was wonderful! Definitely the best crowd support I've ever seen at a race.

One of my favorite things about the race was the amount of Boston support that was everywhere. There were homemade t-shirts, signs, bracelets, headbands, and hundreds of people wearing Boston Marathon gear. For a small donation to the One Fund Boston you could also grab a pin and an extra bib to wear during the race. It was a cool feeling to look down and remember the people of Boston and those who weren't able to finish whenever I felt tired or doubtful.

The moment Gina and I started planning for the marathon, we both knew right away what our post-race lunch was going to be. If you've ever been to Pittsburgh, I hope you've treated yourself to some Primanti Brothers. If you haven't had it, you NEED to. It's a Pittsburgh must! Whatever kind of sandwich you want, topped with french fries and coleslaw and smashed between the softest, chewiest bread. I have literally been craving a Primanti sandwich for about two years, and it did not disappoint!

My official time for the race was 4:08:22 - SO close to my elusive goal of being under 4 hours. Although I didn't make my time goal, I don't feel disappointed. I felt the best physically that I've ever felt in a marathon. I held an extremely consistent pace throughout the race, only stopping to walk through a few fluid stations in the back half of the race, and got a new personal record by 14 minutes! Gina also had an awesome race, shaving 20 minutes off her time in the half and commenting how good she felt throughout the race.

I know that speed and distance are the standard measures of a runner's success, but like a lot of standard measures, they're wholly inadequate to measure your experience. They're inadequate to measure you. One day I will finish a marathon under 4 hours, and one day I will qualify for the Boston Marathon. It's hard not to measure yourself against other runners, or wish for a better time or more endurance. But the fact is, not making a goal by 8 minutes doesn't measure up to the fun I had running in my favorite city, on a warm sunny day in May, with my husband cheering me on, one of my best friends at the finish line, and a heavy medal placed around my neck at the end. I'm officially a Runner of Steel.

i can't think of an interesting title, so...banana.

I often get sucked into thinking negatively about blogging. It seems almost everyone has something better, more interesting to write about. I get excited about starting a blog, then either can't think of anything to actually blog about, or think perhaps my life just isn't interesting enough. I started this blog because I felt like I was too limited with what I could write about on my last endeavor. It was (is) mainly a running blog, which is a large part of my life, but it's not everything. I wanted the freedom to have a place to express my thoughts, share photos, experiences, or anything I darn well wanted. And that's what I'm starting.

Lately there have been several posts and articles circling around the web about social media and its effects on people. Social media can be a confusing thing. Over-sharing, vague posts, bragging, comparing, bashing, hating, and jealousy all exist in different ways, and it's hard to know how to process and filter what you see and read in a way that can be positive. I've been one of those people before - the type that compares. Isn't it so hard not to be? But whose fault is it when negative thoughts arise, the person who posted it or the person who is viewing it? Everyone's lives are different. That's the beauty of God's creation. Everyone has something worthwhile to share with others, whether it be through a beautiful vacation photo of a place others may never visit, or sharing an accomplishment that is worthy of admiration or praise.

I'm as guilty as anyone of having a sense of bitterness about my own sense of post-worthy occasions. There have been times I've refrained from sharing because I don't want anyone to know what's going on in my life, lest they judge. Most of the time that's not the case. I genuinely LOVE seeing pictures and reading accomplishments or problems solved or just a seeing a photo of your beautiful smiling face. Or your crying child covered in spaghetti sauce. Or your dog wearing a wig. I am incredibly blessed to have the friends I do and to know the people I've encountered throughout life, even if I may never have the opportunity to interact with them in person again. This life is an intricate blanket woven with experiences and people, and I intend to make mine as thick as possible. Social media connects us in ways that previous generations never got to experience. News travels faster than ever before - within seconds, minutes of a major event it is broadcasted on Twitter and Facebook. I can message 20 people at the same time and get an instant reply from someone halfway across the world. I can read blogs about your latest baking mishap as if I was standing in your kitchen this morning. I'm a very nostalgic person in general, so keeping up with friends is incredibly important to me, and social media is the fastest way to do that. So please, please keep sharing about your life, even when you feel like it's not important, no one cares, or no one's looking.

 Let's face it. I'm never going to be an every day blogger. I'm not an artist, in-depth writer, mom, photographer, celebrity, living in a fun/interesting/cultural city (what up High Point!), on a new adventure, or a fancy chef with delicious meals to share. Don't get me wrong - I love reading about all those things. They just aren't me (right now). I'm looking forward to sharing about my life in this little corner of the Internet, no matter what it may look like to others. I am happy to have a place to be able to look back on and remember fun things that have happened, or how I was feeling about a particular situation. I hope you enjoy it, too. Posting may be sporadic and random, but I hope you'll check back often to see what's new in this life of mine.