Bumming around Seattle (December 26th)

So, last week at this time, I was just waking up in my own bed for the first time in a week after a great trip to Seattle for Christmas.  Sadly, the last week has passed so quickly and was so busy, I haven't had time to finish this blog post from the day after Christmas.  However, we had such a fun day seeing the random sights of Seattle, that I still wanted to post it for posterity...or something like that.  

Our first stop of the day was, quite possibly, the one about which I was most excited:  the REI flagship store in downtown Seattle.

It was amazing inside!!  Seriously, I could have wandered around this place for hours upon hours.  Fortunately, I limited myself to 2 hours =)  The shoe department alone was bigger than my REI here in Vegas.  

In addition, they had this huge rock climbing apparatus.  If you look at the top right, you can see Santa Claus rappelling down!  Even Santa hangs out at REI.

We had a lot of fun exploring the grounds surrounding the store too.  REI definitely knew that groupies like me would want to visit this place as a tourist destination.   I got pretty excited about this kayaking picture set up.  I'm not sure why because I've never been kayaking and don't have a desire to.  

They also had these fun clocks outside that showed the local time at various outdoor adventure locations.  For example, Everest:

After dropping some cash at REI, we headed over to Pike's Place Market, home of fish tossing.  

I wasn't really looking forward to walking around the Market.  I've been there before, so I needed a really good reason to brave the crowds and the pervasive smell of fish.  Those reasons are:  lunch at Le Panier and delicious, freshly-made donut snacks from the market.

After the market, we headed towards two sights that I've wanted to see since high school (when have of my conversations consisted largely of quotes from 10 Things I Hate About You).  I'm not usually one of those people that seeks out sights seen in movies, but 10 Things was my #1, top, favorite movie for many years.  Because I'd previously visited Stadium High School, or Padua as it's known in the movie, we first made the short drive from downtown Seattle over the Aurora Bridge and around to see the Fremont Troll, who resides under the Aurora Bridge.

After the obligatory photo taking, we headed towards my final stop on my 10 Things movie tour:  Gas Works Park, the sight of an old gasification plant where they've left up a lot of the plant fixtures.  This was the sight of Kat Stratford & Patrick Verona's afternoon of fun with paintballs.

We started by walking up to the top of the Earth Mound, a man-made hill to see a view of the Seattle skyline, including the Space Needle.  It was really beautiful and I could have sat there and watched the boats and sea planes for hours.  I imagine it is even more beautiful when the sun is setting.

After visiting the Earth Mound, we walked through some of the tanks and pipes that make up the background of the park.  Walking in this area reminded me of the 3 years I spent working at a food ingredients plant before I went to law school.  Rather than opening the tanks and testing corn syrup within, I decided to perch on top.  It was only afterwards that I saw on the signs that said "Do Not Climb on Structures."  Oops...

I'm basically the Gas Works Park gargoyle =)

The final stop of the day was at the Brooks Running Outlet Store in Bothell, WA.  It took us like 45 minutes to an hour to get there from Gas Works Park, but it was definitely worth the trip!  We got a bunch of pairs of first generation pure project shoes for $10/pair!!  The sizes were very limited, but the had size 12, the size that Adam and my dad wear, in just about every type of men's shoe.  The women's sizes were even more limited, but I did leave with one pair of PureGrits.  I don't really do a lot of trail running, but for $10, I was not leaving without these.

Unfortunately for us, but fortunately for our bank account, the space for taking things back home to Vegas was limited.  But, if you ever find yourself in the Seattle area, check this place out!  So many awesome deals on excellent Brooks running clothes and shoes for men and women.  Next time I go to Seattle, I will be leaving extra space in my suitcase for purchases from the Brooks Outlet.

I don't think I'll be wanting to move to Seattle anytime soon....too much rain and cloud cover...but, I really enjoyed exploring the city and completing my 10 Things movie scene tour.  We'll definitely be back to visit family in the future and I definitely won't be complaining.  In fact, we have tentative plans to go back to explore the National Parks in the area next summer!

Weekend Roundup + A Treadmill Workout

I wasn't going to do a weekend recap because we were pretty lazy this weekend, but there are just a couple of highlights that I just have to share.  Also, this is going to be the shortest post ever because it is after midnight and I can barely keep my eyes open!

First, how adorable is my little dog and her love for Husband?  She jumped up and decided to lay on top of him.  I promise you, this photo was NOT staged.

Second, two words: "bacon pancakes."  Yeah, that's a real thing.  I indulged in them at Original House of Pancakes here in Vegas.  Woah, mind blown.  You should check them out.  

I'll be trying to make them at home someday soon.  I'm thinking buckwheat and bacon pancakes.  Stay tuned.

Finally, I feel obligated to inform you July is a *very* special month.  Apparently, 29 years ago, then-President Reagan proclaimed July as National Ice Cream Month!  I know you're going to be very sad when I inform you that you missed National Ice Cream Day...it is the third Sunday of July (two days ago).  I celebrated by chowing down on some delicious strawberry ice cream mochi from Trader Joe's.  Strawberry is my favorite right now, but I love all of the flavors (strawberry, chocolate, mango, & green tea).

According to Wikipedia, "President Reagan designated July 1984 as National Ice Cream Month and July 21, 1984 as National Ice Cream Day with Presidential Proclamation 5219 in 1984."  The fact that the first National Ice Cream Month occurred just 4 months after I was born is no coincidence; I was born to love ice cream!!

Which brings me to Monday.  The weather was actually under 100 degrees when I left work...really bizarre and a really welcome change in the Vegas weather pattern.  Even though it was still 96 degrees when I got home, I was planning on running outside.  However, my Garmin watch was dead as a doornail and I was not in the mood to run tech-naked, so I made my way to the treadmill.  I decided to do an interval workout with 800m runs @ 9:20 mile pace with a 400m recovery runs in between.

I really liked this workout...it'll be making a repeat appearance.

Full disclosure:  This is what I watched while I was running:

Are you jealous of my awesome taste in movies?

************************************************

Favorite type of ice cream, go! (not ice cream flavor, like favorite ice cream novelty treat)

     (I pretty much love all ice cream, but right now I'm eating a lot of mochi and fruttare)

Are you weirded out by the bacon pancakes?

     (I'm more a member of the "the more bacon the better" camp)

Do you watch movies/tv while on the treadmill?  What are you watching these days?

     (I have a 90's teen/rom-com thing going on lately)

************************************************

Running Developments

it's funny because its true
actually, my first thought was "only for three months"?

Two happy running developments to share.

#1   I'm really feel like I've come out of my slump.  In fact, today was the first day on my new running plan to build a solid base and have plenty of time to get my long runs accomplished before the Chicago Marathon!  Technically, yesterday was the first day but Monday is a recovery day from my hike or long run that usually takes place on Sunday.  I'm very excited to have my training schedule posted on my fridge and at work to keep me motivated.

.....running, running, running.....

I also have a pretty lofty (for me) goal for the SeaWheeze half marathon, but I don't want to publicly divulge that one until I figure out how feasible it actually is.  Stay tuned . . .

#2   I've invested in some exciting new running music.  OMG am I excited.  You should be too.

I am *so* glad that sexy is back, again.

Workout was a three mile run.  It was an easy run day, just kept it smooth & easy at slightly under 10:00/mile.  My legs felt pretty heavy, but they usually feel that way the first run after a weekend of hiking.  After the run I did some walking cool-down and then a few squats, some lunges (yuck) and of course a plank.

Food was nothing special.  I'm beginning to explore microwaved eggs, I'm sure I'm the last person on the planet that has discovered this but it is pure brilliance.  Also, the amount of chocolate that I ingested today was . . . embarrassing . . . and may or may not have included half a tube of thin mints . . . oops.

♥ Wishing You Merry Miles ♥