Random Five (Friday Five Edition)

It's been quite awhile since I have posted.  It's been a very busy couple of weeks for me which included training all week last week, which meant catching up on everything this week.  So I thought I would post some random things that have been happening.

1 - Since about May I have had a sore throat on and off.  Never with a fever and never anything that was a big deal.  When I had my yearly physical last month, I mentioned it to her.  She wanted me to go see an ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat) doctor.  Again, since I didn't think it was a huge deal it took me awhile to get around to make an appointment.  The funny thing about the practice she referred me to was I called and expected that it would be 3-4 weeks at a minimum to get an appointment, and they had one for the next day.  That never happens.  I saw one of the ENTs on Monday and he put an optical fiber endoscopy down my nose to look at the back of my throat.  It turns out that I have Adenoiditis.  It just means that my adenoids are infected and he gave me these HUGE antibiotic pills to take.  If it doesn't clear up, I'm to go back in a couple of weeks.

2 - Just these past few days, it is now starting to feel like fall.  I've never really like fall as this time of year is when I get most of my anxiety due to darker and colder days.  Even though it's the same 24 hours, because it's darker early, I feel like I have less time to get things done, which causes most of my anxiety.  Once I get used to it, the anxiety tends to alleviate for the most part.  But I am very thankful to have the few extra weeks this year.

3 - I only play the Mega Millions and Powerball when the jackpot gets really high like it is now.  I know I will never win, but I enjoy thinking of what I would do if I did.  Paying off my house and car and paying off any debts that my parents have and then traveling.  I've only won a dollar a couple of times, but I played the Mega Millions last Wednesday and I matched 3 numbers and won $10!  I know that's not a huge deal, but it was exciting for me.  And I'll be reinvesting that money into my dreams for tonight's drawing. :)

4 - I'm a bit embarrassed on how long I have owned my couch, but I've had it forever.  It is a loveseat that rocks and reclines.  I've had it forever because it's very comfortable and it fits perfectly in my awkwardly long and narrow living room.  I always sit on the right hand side because it's closest to the end table and the past month I have noticed that the cushioning (or lack of) on that side is probably causing me issues with my glutes (and therefore my knee).  So I have moved the couch around so that the end table is on the left side.  I have to say it is awkward.  I am right handed and it's weird to have everything on the left side.  But I either have to get used to it or go shopping for a new couch, which fills me with anxiety.  For big purchases that will be daily use, I have to know everything about every option and I have to analyze it all to make sure I am making the right choice.  I swear as the item for purchase gets bigger, the time I analyze it goes up 100 times.  It's ridiculous.  So for now we will see how this works.

5 - I never hum.  I never whistle (while I work).  I never sing.  But I noticed over the last few months that I have started humming.  It's so weird, I don't know why I all of the sudden started.  And the weirder part, it's always the same song.  Not only that, it's always the same Christmas song.  I might understand it some if I started it now, but it's been happening all summer long.  In June out of nowhere I'll realize that I'm humming a Christmas song.

And a bonus - I had to share this as it's probably one of the most beautiful sunrises I have ever seen.  It was on a sunrise ride I did last weekend.

I'm hoping to get a few posts prepped, so when I do have a busy couple weeks, I'll still have something to post when I don't have time to sit down and write something out.  Till next time. :)

How have you been?  Anything random happen to you this week?

I'm linking up with Fairytales and Fitness and Running on Happy for Friday Five 2.0

Upcoming Fall Plans (Friday Five Edition)

With my summer not being very interesting, I thought I'd try to highlight things that I want to do this fall.  That way I won't let the season get away from me without a little bit of excitement.


1. I have one real race this fall.  I really don't count the Bubble Run that I did last week as that is more of a fun run then a race.  I have joined a few other ladies and we will be doing the Baltimore Marathon Relay.  It's only 3 weeks away and with my lack of training, I hope I get the shortest distance. :)

2. I really need to get a massage or two or 50.  At least once a month my back tenses up so bad I have to spend a lot of time on my lacrosse ball.  I'm always saying how much easier it would be if I just scheduled regular massages.  I'm not sure if I like the idea of the big box places where you sign up for a membership.  I just don't know how reliable the masseuses will be.  But then if you find a nice independent one, they are only open during the week, during week hours.  So I go back and forth on what I want to do and then just don't do anything.  I need to get off my but and schedule one once a month.

3. I really want to try to keep biking over the winter.  I'm not talking like every weekend or anything like that, but it would be nice to keep riding even when it's a little on the chilly side.  I do have to say that more then anything I HATE the cold, so this will be a challenge.  I did buy a long pair of biking pants and a couple biking underwear.  Now don't laugh too hard at this.  They are basically very short biking shorts that make it easier to wear under normal (non-padded) pants.  This way I'm spending less money and able to use the tights and pants that I use for running.

4. I really want to try and get my house organized again.  I know this doesn't sound like fun, but it will really make me feel a lot better.  When I was out of work earlier this year, I really got some good cleaning done.  I didn't 100% finish everything and those rooms I did finish are starting to look a bit cluttered again.  I'd like to just pick something small in a room each weekend and get that done.  I'm hoping by the time winter comes around, I won't feel like I'm starting to lose control of the mess.  I just want to try and get ahead of it, just a little.

5. Fix up some things outside my house.  Again, it doesn't sound very fun, but it will make me feel much better.  I need to do things like weed and cut back growth from this summer.  I need to power wash one side of my house, which has green stuff all over it.  I need to power wash and stain my front porch.  I'd like to find someone to move the tree/bush things in front of my house to the back.  I feel like it's a security issue not being able to see my front door, but I don't want to cut them down.  Or maybe I can find someone who can trim it better then me to make them a lot smaller.  I'm not sure how much I'll get done, but we will have some nice weekends coming up in the next month or two.

This is from 2 years ago, those are at least a foot taller

I'd like to also try to spend more time with my kitties.  My old lady is 18 years old this month.  All she wants to do is to lay in my lap.  But that means I will just have to sit on my couch some extra. :)

Do you get massages from those subscription places?  Do you like them?  What races do you have coming up?  What fun fall plans do you have?

I'm linking up with Fairytales and Fitness and Running on Happy for Friday Five 2.0

Goodbye Summer, Hello Fall (Friday Five Edition)

Today is the first day of fall.  I thought I would look back to see the highlights of the summer.  The sad thing is, I had to really think hard to get five things.  I'll have to try better next summer.

1. One of the main reasons I am having a hard time thinking of highlights of the summer is because of work.  One, I don't get paid time off, so it kinda is hard to justify to take off a day or there to do something fun.  Don't get me wrong, I will be taking time off, but I feel I really need to justify it now.  I also go thrown into a huge project the month before go-live.  Meaning I was working tons of hours.  Good for the wallet, bad for fun extra things.

I also got a new job title of Scrum Master.  Basically that's a glorified Program Manager in the Agile world.  I might do a post to explain all of that in a week or two.  It's a position I have been wanting to get for the last year and a half, so I'm glad that I finally have the title.  I still work with my original team doing the things I did, but I also joined a second team as the Scrum Master.  I know it sounds like I'm doing two jobs, but it's worked out.

2. I decided that I needed to take some time off from running.  So at the beginning of the summer I got myself a new bike.  This was something I have been talking about for the last two years.  It was about time I got off my butt and get one so that I could enjoy some time on it.  And I did.  Minus a few weeks when work was crazy and my IT band really was bothering me.


I was able to get out for many beautiful sunrise rides.


I mean a lot.


Really I should say tons.


3. With this new bike, I did a triathlon.  It had been a couple years since I had done one.  On top of that, I was very under-trained.  But getting out there and doing it, I forgot how much I enjoyed it.  The training can be hard to fit in, but even with very little, I was able to put everything I had out on the course.  Before the race I swore I wasn't going to sign up for this one again.  After, I knew I had to as I love that course.


4. We have been having a friend stop by the back door almost every day before summer started.  She came by every day and just sat at the door.


My cats loved when she came by.  They would just sit there and watch her.  Sometimes they would claw and hiss at the windows, but mostly they all just stared at each other.  I ended up naming her Duibhe (Doobie), which is black in Gaelic.  All of my cats have Irish names, and since I didn't know if the kitty was a boy or girl, I thought this would work.  Since then my neighbor had said she believes the cat is a girl.  I don't quite know how she knows, but she does a lot of work with cats.


5. As summer hit, it was getting very hot in my upstairs.  Every summer I hate being upstairs during the day because I have two skylights in my bedroom.  With full sunshine in there for most of the day, it was very hard to keep the upstairs cool.  I had heard of shades for your skylights a few years back and kept meaning to get some.  But, like my bike, I'm very good at putting things off.  I don't know why as it was the best thing for my house.

What did you do this past summer?  Anything fun?  Anything productive?

I'm linking up with Fairytales and Fitness and Running on Happy for Friday Five 2.0

Five Reasons I'm Trying to Love the Fall (Friday Five Edition)

I am one of those that does not like to see the summer over with.  There are many reasons I don't like the fall.  I don't like the cold, I don't like the shorter days, and I think I have repressed memories of going back to school.  I don't have kids to be excited that they are going back to school.  I don't drink coffee to be excited about all the fall flavors.  I hate wearing layers of clothes, I just want to put on shorts, shirt and sandals an head out.  I won't get a chance to bike ride as often or any during the colder months.  Instead of being sad about it, I thought I would come up with five reasons to love the fall.  I hope this helps others that are already missing the summer days.

Cooler Running - There is about 2-4 weeks of perfect running weather each spring and fall.  I still don't have to think about what I need to wear for the temperature and I'm not a sweaty mess the second I step out the door.  If I could have every run in the mid-50's I'd run all the time.  There are also the prospects of a lot of fun fall races.  This weather has even motivated me to get out and run after 3 months of not running.


Open Windows - I love to have my windows open.  If I could have them open all day every day I would.  But like running, there are only a few weeks each spring and fall that I can do that.  My kitties love it even better.


Fall Foliage - If you have seen my Instagram, you will know I love beautiful nature pictures.  The colors of the trees in the fall just fascinate me.  Sometimes I take a day trip up to Charlottesville to see all the colors in the mountains.  And something I have been doing since I was a child was stepping on leaves.  I still love to hear that crunch.


Chili - I don't do a lot of cooking, but the one thing I make and make well is chili.  I do a few different types of chili, but I love making my White Chili.  Instead of ground beef, I will cook up some chicken and cut it up to little pieces and then add the beans, spices, and tomatoes.  I will also add corn and rice.  I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.

TV - While TV has evolved over the years, I still have excitement over the new shows and episodes that will come across the tubes.  I don't have cable anymore and I don't watch a lot of TV weekly, but I still look forward to hearing about the new shows and putting them in my Netflix or Hulu queues.  And with the weather colder and the nights darker, there is nothing better then snuggling under a blanket on the couch.

And each day that we get through fall brings us closer to the Holidays!!

Why do you like the fall?  What else can I be excited for?

I'm linking up with Fairytales and Fitness and Running on Happy for Friday Five 2.0