The First Step is Admitting It

I'm not the neatest person...



... yet I'm not a total slob.



I enjoy the feeling of living in an immaculately clean and organized apartment...



... even if that's not very often.



But I have a weakness. And that weakness is called my kitchen.

I get it clean and I think, "this is it! It's going to stay this way forever!" But it usually takes me less than 3 days to completely mess it up again.

So if I can get it that messy after only 3 days, imagine what an entire week could do.

Why imagine when you can see for yourself?







I'm not proud of this. But the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem.

My kitchen is my official weekend project. I hope to be finished with all those dishes by tomorrow afternoon so I can cook a delicious meal for myself.

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On a different and possibly understated note, my mom and I will be running our first 5K of 2009 this Saturday.

I had it on my list of possible races, and I had it in the back of my head... but we officially registered today. There is no backing out now. I don't expect my time to be good, but I need to get into it... have a benchmark to start the year from.

________________________________

Lastly... I FINALLY received a phone call from the guy who interviewed me 2 weeks ago. He was supposed to call last Monday, so he's just a TAD late. He apologized profusely for not getting in touch with me and informed me they went with someone else. The good news is, he said I had an "impressive interview" and they would keep my resume on file in case their new hire didn't work out. I suggested to my boyfriend he should call up the new employee and offer them a "job" in Philly.

Running in PA and Getting Sick

I got back from Philly yesterday morning. I brought with me a brutal cold.

Trip summary...

Got in on Tuesday afternoon. That evening, we went out to hear some bands play at a local bar.



On Wednesday, the weather was gorgeous.



So I made Ryan go running with me.



We went 1 1/2 miles in a little over 16 minutes. I do NOT envy any runner who has to put up with those insane hills!

Thursday, I woke up sick. I had a horrible sore throat, so we spent the day in (Ryan took very good care of me).

And here I am... still sick. Although from what I hear, it must be a virus going around the blogging community. My sore throat has turned into a full-blown cold. I'm trying to drug it into submission, but that doesn't seem to be working.

That guy never called me about the job. I'm angry. He promised he would call, and I even called HIM and left a voicemail asking that he call me back. I was thinking to myself that he better have a really good reason for not calling me... like he got in a car accident or his house exploded. But then I felt bad for wishing ill upon him, so I tried to think of GOOD reasons why he wouldn't call me... like he was called to be on a game show, or he won the lottery and quit his job. That sounds likely, right?

I hope everyone had a good week. I have a cold to kick and 2 pounds to re-lose. I'll try to get back into the blogging this week.

Waiting Game

No word yet on the job. He said there was a 50% chance he'd make the decision by Friday, and a 50% chance he'd make it by Monday. So tomorrow is the big day. He said he would call me no matter what, which is good.

I ran 3 miles yesterday in 31:29 (10:29 pace), which is faster than normal. The weather is starting to warm up. We have cold days, but there are enough warm days for me to get outside and run at least once a week.

March Madness is driving me... well, MAD. One game runs over, which causes the next one to start late. Then that game goes into overtime, which causes the following game to start late, and next thing you know... our 10 o'clock news isn't going on air until 11:45. Plus, I really dislike basketball. Yesterday, I had the supreme privilege of watching SEVEN hours of it. I bet some of you out there would DIE to get paid for that.

I'm heading to Philadelphia this week to visit the boy. If anyone has any great sightseeing suggestions, leave a comment!

TGIF Photo Friday

(Theme courtesy Nikemom.)

I have always loved animals. One of the things that excites me most about getting a new job and a new apartment is that I can finally get a dog. I'm absolutely obsessed with the idea.

Not being able to have a dog over the past few years just meant I had to get my pet-fix by other means.

Sophomore year in college, we got fish...



After that, I bought a mouse...



Then my roommate got a garter snake that we were all afraid of...



Junior year, my roommate bought two dwarf hamsters. They then proceeded to have babies (and then the babies had babies). We ended up with somewhere around 25 hamsters...



Senior year, my roommate's chihuahua spent quite a few weeks at our house...



After college, I bought another dwarf hamster...



After he died, I was left with the Wisconsin wildlife...



Of course, every time I pass a pet store, I can't help but stop in and play with the puppies...



I hope everyone is having a good day. I expect a long work day ahead because of March Madness (last night, they couldn't leave until 1:30am). I keep reminding myself... overtime.overtime.overtime.overtime. MONEY!

I'm Excited and Nervous

The interview? I think it went well.

The twist ending? He's hiring solely off of phone interviews. What?! Yes. No real live in person interviews. Although, the phone interview wasn't without it's stress and intimidation. It lasted a FULL hour and he asked a bazillion questions about my qualifications and experience and personality and expectations.

So I should know by tomorrow at the earliest, or Monday at the latest. Fingers crossed! If they hire me, I will have to give my 2 weeks notice immediately. I have a flight to go visit Ryan in Philadelphia next week, but if I get offered the job, we will fly down to Tulsa together to check out apartments.

So many things happening at once. It's either a life-changing moment, or just a blip on the radar that I'll try to forget about later.

Speaking of Ryan, he has returned to his long-forgotten-about blog. I'm shocked. And I'm shocked that he actually went on a run today. Could this be a new Ryan? We'll see. But I told him I'm gonna make him run with me next week. Last time we ran together, it was pretty disastrous. But I've gotten better since then, so HE is the one that should be worried! Muahahaha.

2009 Food Challenge: Sunflower Seeds

I'm still crazy sore from yesterday's run, so I'm taking the morning off. And in an interesting plot twist, I've been contacted about ANOTHER job! This one is in Green Bay. Big difference between Green Bay and Tulsa!

So here, for your viewing pleasure is another edition of the 2009 Food Challenge!

What did I buy? Sunflower Seeds... roasted and salted. I consider this my segue to nuts (which I hate).



Any preconceived notions? When they are in their shell, they make me think of the mice I used to own (it's what they ate). When they are out of their shell, they make me think of crazy health nut people sitting around eating their seeds.

Have I tried it before? Once or twice here or there... but never roasted.

How was it prepared? Just plain out of the bag.



The verdict? I was surprised that I actually liked them. It was a good snack because it takes me a while to eat them all (which means I'm not eating other junk during that time!). I can only handle so many though. After a while, they start to taste rather bland.

Will I buy it again? I think I just might.

You Won't Believe What I Just Did

... that's what I said to my boyfriend when I got back from my run.

(drumroll please)

I ran for OVER FIVE MILES.

or

I ran for AN ENTIRE HOUR without stopping.

I was going to post my newest Food Challenge, but this is far more excited (to me, at least).

It's the furthest I've run by by 1.06 miles, and the longest I've run by 15 minutes. The weather was perfect, and since it's a Sunday, there were lots of pedestrians to watch.

A moment for the negative... IT HURT. As soon as I passed the 3-mile mark, both hips started to ache. They didn't stop until I stopped running (scratch that... they still hurt). My right knee had some pretty severe pain on and off through the final 2 miles of the run.

I'm thinking I definitely should look into some sort of vitamins or something. My joints are at least 50 years older than I am.

But I'm still really excited! This just opened a whole new door for me and my running. Wooo.

Food Challenge post tomorrow, I promise.

You All Totally Called It

That wasn't much of a vote at all... it was a slaughter!

The Rockman Triathlon won 6-0. Along with that, my mom convinced me that I need to sign up for the Chicago Triathlon too. My Dad wants to compete in the Chicago SuperSprint (which was my first triathlon ever) as HIS first triathlon ever! Awesome. So he would be doing the SuperSprint, and I would do the Sprint the following day.

The big question is... DID I sign up for any of these races?

And the big answer is NO.

But I have a great reason. Because right before I went to sign up for them, I got an email from Tulsa, OK. The CBS affiliate wants to conduct a phone interview with me!

That's right... a JOB prospect. And in a #61 market (does that mean anything to you people?). I'm extremely excited about this and even dreamed last night that I was living in Oklahoma (no joke).

Well, I have a few hours until work. There are dishes to wash, workouts to complete, and internets to surf.

A Sad Day for Triathlete Kelly

As of 7 days ago, my choice spring triathlon filled up. I know this because I finally said "enough of this horsing around" and went to register this morning. And when I got there, the website said NO. No triathlon for you!

Now I'm stuck and I'm not sure what my next step should be. So naturally, like a good blogger, I shall take a vote.

1) June 7, Rockman Triathlon: Only about 15 minutes away. The earliest nearby triathlon I could find.

2) June 14, U.S. Women's Triathlon Series: Takes place in my hometown, 1.5 hr away. My race of choice. Problem is, I 100% cannot take off work that weekend, so I would have to send my parents to get my race packet the day before. I would have to make sure I was done racing by 12:30 so I could get back in time for work.

3) Nothing: Both of these races are nonrefundable, of course. So, I'm not convinced I should sign up for ANYTHING yet. However, that's how I screwed myself over with the race that just closed.

You may now pick up your electronic keypads and make your voting selection (aka leave a comment).

Handicapped With a Bottle of Wine

I went grocery shopping tonight... accidentally parked in the handicapped spot... now convinced I'm going to hell.

Bought something new for my 2009 Food Challenge! I will post results tomorrow or the day after.

My weekend is quickly coming to an end. 7 days of work ahead.

Going to watch Biggest Loser with Ryan (via AIM) and a bottle of Chardonnay. Woo!

3 Mile Soreness

I ran 3 miles yesterday without stopping. Yayy! I know it's not much compared to the 8, 10, 14 miles other people are running... but compared to my 1 mile run on Thursday, I'm thrilled.

I woke up today with really sore calves. That's what I get for not stretching.

Day off today. Long day ahead of training the new girl.

TGIF Photo Friday

(Theme courtesy Nikemom.)

The other day, I received a package from That Pink Girl. It was the grocery bag I had won!

So, when I went to the grocery store the other day, I tried it out.

I love it! It's cute and pink and holds a lot of my groceries (but not all of them, because I buy a LOT of food!).




Backtracking a little bit... I was looking through my pantry and making my grocery list. I realized that I have SO much food that I'm just not eating. I figured I could cut my grocery bill down significantly if I just tried to eat what I already had. So instead of making a grocery list, I made a chart of meals for each day... using only the food I already had.

It's been going really well so far. I've been eating a little healthier and I only spent $30 at the grocery store for staples like milk, cereal, lettuce, etc.





It's 51 degrees outside today with 9 mph winds, so I think I'll try another run. I hope my joints hold up.

Hello, spring?

Who knew that 55 degrees is the PERFECT temperature to go running in? Not me! But it was wonderful and warm. I got to wear a t-shirt (I saw some people in JACKETS and GLOVES and wondered why they are so crazy?!). Unfortunately, this warm day also brought disturbingly strong winds. I was literally being blown over with the 30 mph gusts. That doesn't make for fun running.

I only got ONE mile out when my hip started hurting too bad to continue. I stopped, turned around, and walked back to my apartment. Boooo. Despite that, my spirits are high. I have strong hopes that my pains will improve as the season progresses and I get in more miles.

I'm in disbelief that spring is coming (Is it coming?). Actually, when I was out today, it felt more like fall than spring. There aren't any flowers or blooms or new leaves. There is brown grass and dead leaves blowing around. That's not very spring-like. The weird thing about the warm weather, is it will motivate me to go to the Y more (counter-intuitive, I know). This is because I enjoy running or walking to the Y (it's just across the river from me). When it's cold and snowy, I have to drive there, and that's no fun.

I hope you are all experiencing the wonderful weather as well (and using it to your training advantage!). Tomorrow is supposed to be another gorgeous day, so I'll probably try another run.

The Good, the Bad, and the Incredibly Frustrating

Things are going well. I'm on my "weekend" right now, and trying to savor every moment of it. I haven't stepped a foot outside my apartment all day and I'm totally okay with that.

I'm currently watching Jimmy Fallon's debut in late night, and I'm rooting for him.

My workouts have been scattered. I did 30 minutes on my trainer tonight while watching "How I Met Your Mother" (turned WAY up in order to hear it over the trainer). It felt REALLY good, which surprised me. I need to start cranking out the workouts on a more regular basis.

I've temporarily stopped counting calories. However, that doesn't mean I've stopped weighing myself. I don't want to slip into a black hole of weight gain without knowing it.

As for frustrating? My job. I really hate to use this blog to complain, but I'm going to. (Plus, when I complained to my mom on the phone today, she gave me the whole "see it as an opportunity" speech.)

Anyway, I somehow got stuck training our newest employee. That's not the problem. If I was training a new director, I'd love it. "DO WHAT I SAY!" (or something like that.)

The problem lies in that I am training her in a position that I don't know how to do (master control). "Why" you ask?! Because she is still in college, and the only days she can work happen to be days which the master control employees have off. Thus, all that's left is me.

And I swear I have been called out and yelled at more times in the past 3 weeks than in the previous YEAR at my station. I feel nervous at times that I'm going to be fired for all my mistakes... but can they fire me for a job they didn't hire me for?

My boss called me twice today demanding explanations for mistakes made over the weekend. I'm in a lose-lose situation. If I say the mistakes were my fault, I get in trouble. If I say the mistakes were the trainee's fault (which I did, because they were), then I get this response: "Well, I guess she'll just need a LOT more training then."

LOT? I know what that means for me. It means more weeks not doing what I'm supposed to be doing and what I was hired to do (direct the news).

To end on a happy note... I just booked a flight to see Ryan in 3 weeks. If that doesn't surprise my parents, they'll be delighted to know I charged the flight to their credit card! Woops!