Happy New Year!

Well, I'm back. Once again. Been busy the past two weeks. But first, here's a photo of the Washington, D.C. Holiday RBF meetup last Thursday. From right to left, Noames, me, Jeanne, Susan, and her boyfriend, D. We had a great time drinking appletinis and wine, eating tapas, and sharing stories. Thanks v. much especially to Susan and her beau for driving all the way from Fredricksburg, more than an hour south of the city.

Okay, what I've been up to, flash version: I was in Los Angeles for four days before Christmas, where I shopped and bickered with my grandmother, ate lots of sushi, and caught a concert at the futuristic Walt Disney Concert Hall. Then I was off to Seattle for a mileage run.

After that, for the new year, I resolved to get serious about my running and I signed up for the inaugural National Marathon. I ramped up my mileage and I logged 28 miles this past week for the first time ever. On Saturday, I ran 10.1 miles with an average 9:10/mile pace (E. gave me a Garmin for Christmas).

Before that, I had two interval sessions (7m onTues. & 4m on Thurs.), and a 4-mile tempo run with hills on Monday at 8:04/mile pace. Then on Sunday, New Year's Day, with tired legs and sore hamstrings - but with enthusiasm! - I ran my running club's Predictions and Resolutions 5K.

My final time was 24:02 (avg 7:44/mile pace). At the base of the last hill, two men in sweatshirts were cheering us on, and one of them said, "Tenth female! Dig Deep!"

Me, 1oth? Cool. Besides finishing 10th among the women, I placed 55th overall. There were about 195 runners. Not bad. I should have been happy, right?! And I was, I was. But a small part of me wished I'd broken 24:00. And I wished I had surged ahead of that pesky woman in the blue running shorts. But that's okay. There's always next time. I won't do my long run before another race, believe me.

Before I forget, I was asked to give five facts about myself. Off the top of my head:

1) I can sightread music like a maniac. Put sheet music in front of me, and whether it's classical, jazz or reggae, I can play it on the piano note-for-note. This skill came in handy when I took a gig as a church choir accompianist in college. I usually just barely made it to the church in time for Sunday morning service, as I was either hung-over or exhausted from hanging out late with friends from the night before. But the choir director could always count on me to play the hymns or other religious songs and follow the choir as if I'd spent hours practicing with them.

2) I don't mind eating restaurants by myself. In fact, I look forward to it. That's because when I do eat alone, it's usually when I'm traveling for business, where I spend all day meeting with, observing, and interviewing people. So mealtimes are the only times when I don't have to be "on." Where I don't have to analyze or ask probing questions. I can just sit, relax, and enjoy some good food.

3) I like hanging out with children I can talk to. I can talk to a 12-year-old boy about Kung Fu movies and play video games with him all afternoon. But babies, I have no interest in. I have never changed a diaper in my life.

4) I like to think I'm a tomboy, then I realize I'm not when I do "girly" things such as applying rosy lipgloss before my long runs and color-coordinating my workout clothes.

5) I don't suffer fools gladly. But I'm trying to be more patient with them.