Other things. Sorta like posts, but not.

Friday, June 29

Final Score Freak Out




Today’s Exploit:
I finally found out what my score was for my first REAL English class. I was panicky for a while, because my instructor took far longer than I thought should be allowable to post grades. Then, after posting one of the two final scores, my overall score was 75% because the site automatically puts a 0 for NA scores after 72 hours.
Freak out time? 
But I was nice and didn’t send any nasty emails freaking out about my C in class, when I had been getting 100% most of the class. (Most of the class being 3 out of 4 previous weeks.)
But now I know. And I was relieved. I was strangely worried about my final paper. But I got full credit. 
This means I get a 99.2% in the class. 
Yay.

Wednesday, June 27

Group Picture Time


A cookie:


Today’s Exploit:
So, after being goofy and taking lots of crazy pictures their mama came out and made them sit still so we could take group pictures.

I couldn't resist tickling, they set me up.



Monday, June 25

Photos with Boys


More running pictures at Evergreen Trail Runs!

Today’s Exploit:
On my last day I remembered to take out my camera. And I made Eli and Cavan sit still, mostly, for pictures with me.

Cavan:
The crazy face

The tickle face

Normal!

Eli:


Oops, a finger. That lens is in the wrong spot!
I said, "Don't move!"
A good one!


It’s hard to get them to sit still. They wiggle and giggle and want to take pictures of everything. 

Friday, June 22

Oopsie


I just finished The Glass Blower of Murano. I am now fascinated by glass works and Italy. Amazing.
Today’s Exploit:
I had some awesome pictures of my buddies to post today. But then I let my camera battery die and the charger is trapped in the bedroom of the trailer. Maybe tomorrow?
PS Here’s proof that I ran, and ran, and ran up the horrible mountain.


And then I finished and couldn't sit down because I'd never ever get up again. Plus, Eli had something really important to tell me (Eli is hiding behind his mama).


The photos were taken by Yumay Chang for Evergreen Trail Runs.




Wednesday, June 20

The Magical Up-Hill Race Loop


Traveling messed up my sinuses. I haven’t been able to breathe properly since I got back.
Today’s Exploit:
I signed up for another race. Another half-marathon. 
I don’t know what I was thinking, but then, the last one wasn’t so bad...
I should have known better when I signed up for a trail run on a mountain. Even a mountain that I had run on before. A year makes your mind hazy and the hills don’t seem so bad and the elevation is just a whisper. When really the hills were nearly vertical climbs and the elevation means you wheeze while walking that flat spot and suffocate on the hills.
A recount, for future reference:
Mile 1: Ack! it’s all up hill. It never ends. Note to self: find more hills to practice on in the flat desert of South Texas.
Mile 2: I give up, I’ll never be able to keep up with Catherine. I need to catch my breath and PS the hill still never ends.
Mile 3: I hate mountains and trails and hiking and running, Oh, wait! I see a level bit of trail!
Mile 4: Oof. Forgot to eat on that monstrous hill I just climbed. I REALLY hope I don’t get a migraine. I have another 6 miles before I get to another aid station. (Lack of oxygen means it never occurred to me that I had the option of going back to the last aid station that was 1/2 a mile back.)
Mile 5: Well, I’m pretty sure I’ll be climbing for ever and ever and ever, but at least it’s not quite so steep. Shoot, I just got a blister.
Mile 6: I made a FRIEND! Yay! She’s doing better than me and she hasn’t run in a long time. This was her way to “get back out the door”. 
Mile 7: The three amigos passed us, and another lady caught us. We are now the three amigas following the three amigos. But we like their pace and we like walking up the hills.
Mile 8: Ooh! Cramp in the calf, I think I’ll walk a minute. Ooh! Cramp in the other calf. Stop to stretch.
Mile 9: We really are going to climb into the clouds. I think this mountain’s magical and our entire race loop will be up hill. PS the cramps are getting worse.
Mile 10: Aid station, woo hoo! And they claim it’s all down hill from here! They gave me a salt tablet and an orange slice maybe the cramps will go away.
Mile 11: They lied. I still have to go up hills. But now walking makes my quads cramp and running makes my thighs cramp. So I have to half shuffle and try really hard not to cramp and make myself fall off the mountain. 
Mile 12: I’m pretty sure that the 50 mile group is going to beat me in this race. At least it’s pretty. "Shuffle shuffle grunt (cramp) shuffle"
Mile 13: I see people! And the cow bells! Yay! The kids are there to give me high five, and I’m turning away from the finish, oh no! another cramp. Ok, it’s only 20 more steps, I can do this. CRAMP! ENTIRE LEG! AAAHHHHH!
I hopped across the finish line and had 5 people attack me to make sure I wasn’t hurt. And then I nearly got tackled by a 4 year old, he wanted to give me a hug and didn’t care if I was stinky and sweaty and salty and falling over on my own.
Amazingly enough, the only part that I wasn’t smiling and having a good time was that 4th mile when I had the migraine scare. The rest was torturously fun. And I got 5th place in my age group. Out of 8, but still...

Tuesday, June 19

The Stories I Hear


I have just spent an hour learning how to cite a reference.
Today’s Exploit:
Right now George is working days because Matt is on paternity leave. 
Being around George is like being lost in a library of fiction stories. Except that his stories are real. And he always has a story. Sometimes I’ve heard them before, like the time he was blown up, or that he’s been run over by 4 cars.
But most of the time they’re new. I’ve learned about his brother, who is 250 pounds of muscle and about as mean as a teddy bear until he snaps. Then, watch out! Or about his snake that he was growing to make a pair of boots, and a belt. But the snake is on the protected species list and they won’t let him. And he just learned that you’re supposed to have a special license to own this type of snake. 
He also was telling me how to train your dog to count. It’s all about the treat. And he’s got a pet goat. It’s named Dog. 

Friday, June 15

English Essays are Boring


I should be writing a persuasive essay on an academically disputed subject. Which means that I could write about anything from abortion to why a bumble bee can fly. 
It’s just too big a pool to make a selection!
Today’s Exploit:
When I was working on my engineering degree I welcomed the, mostly pointless, classes that were required outside the engineering field. It meant that I had an easy A with minimal effort. I mean, it’s hard to get a bad grade in an Economics class with a teacher that can’t do math and uses mixed drinks for all his examples. 
Now that I’m trying to take some business classes I hate the extra “cultural” nonsense. Seriously, I have to take more English classes than I do classes that pertain to business. I also have to take psychology. I have to take all these classes because my prior credits didn’t transfer. Naturally all the math classes transferred, so I don’t even get to take some easy and fun classes. It’s just easy and boring and tedious English classes. Also, I feel like I’ve been demoted to high school, and the teachers are actually more lenient than my high school Humanities teacher.
I get four credits for each of these classes. That means that it’s supposed to take me at least four hours of studying each week to be successful in this class. 
I can write an essay that will get 97-100% in an hour: five paragraphs, five sentences per. The only difficult part is the choice of subjects when they say things like “defend a position that concerns you”. My only boundary is that I should avoid personal attacks on other people. 
I think that means that “people need to learn to take the consequences of their actions” is probably a poor topic choice? I plan on finding some obscure argument that I find entertaining and no one else will have a clue what I’m talking about.

Wednesday, June 13

The Big Update


I have acquired a new follower while I was away. Huh.

Also, the new version of Blogger is strange. 
Today’s Exploit:
It is hot here. Yesterday when I walked out of the trailer to go for my run I felt like I was stepping into the oven after baking some cookies. Texas likes to try to knock you off your feet every time you step out the door. 
In other news I have been running, swimming in the river with big rocks and scraping my knees, running, exploring San Marcos on my bicycle, running, writing English essays, running, being frustrated with school, running and baking in this horrible oven of a state. 
How long has it even been since I last posted? Probably years.
I am getting ready for my second half marathon, I will be running with my friend Catherine. It also means that I will be seeing my buddies Eli and Cavan and escaping the inferno for the moderate temperatures of Washington. Yay!
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