Conspiracy and cookies.

There is no way I can sit through a three and half hour movie without doing something else at the same time. Watching Titanic in the theater doesn't count because I was in high school and my friends and I had sneaked half a convenience store's worth of sugar in with us. Resigned to being stuck inside last night because of craptastic weather and too stubborn to head to the gym to run on the treadmill, I decided I'd take a "rest day" after running my longest distance in 6 months on Monday. So while baking oatmeal dark chocolate chunk cookies, I watched the movie of the evening, Oliver Stone's JFK, a brain buster that is supposed to get you thinking about who killed JFK and why.

Now, I'm a JFK assassination conspiracy geek. I own the Warren Commission Report, I've read the autopsy (the photographs=nasty stuff), I've seen the Zapruder film like a million times, and I've read enough books about the subject that I could write my own screenplay. I'd been putting off watching the movie because I figured it would never live up to my expectations. Turns out that I was right. It didn't come close. I was especially annoyed at the diatribe about extra protection being called off and the Secret Service being understaffed that day as if to make them appear like their hands were clean in the whole subject. Maybe the information about the agents in the trailer car getting smashed and partying until 4am on Nov. 23rd wasn't available in 1991 when the movie was made, but I really doubt that. Had they not been hungover, maybe they could have spotted a rifle propped out a window or up on the grassy knoll. Or maybe they would have been sharper in the mind to notice the motorcycle cops were trailing behind rather than beside the President, leaving him to become a sitting duck. Or maybe... I'll stop now before I ramble even more. The movie could have been better, MUCH better. I'll just leave it at that.

The cookies were good though. I'm sure I'll be cursing them this evening on my run.

Lost in the suburban jungle.

My plan was just to take a quick little run around the lake and loop back home. After a nice warm up, I crossed the street and headed up the hill. This was new territory for me. I'd charted my path with the trusty Google pedometer thingy bopper. My memory was telling me that it was about a 1.5 mile loop around the lake. All I had to do was pick the right path whenever confronted with a fork in the road. And that's what I did.

The rolling hills were a nice change of pace. The drivers speeding by at 45mph or so were a tad worrying, especially when I ran out of sidewalk and had to hop onto the asphalt. For about a quarter mile I felt like I had been displaced to the East coast. Along the shoreline there was a little sailboat and some little ivy league style crew boats lined up. It made me think of Boston. I'd like to go back to Boston some day. And eat Boston Creme Pie while in Boston. It just seems like it would be superior there than anywhere else.

I could see the lake during most of the run so I knew that I'd at least stayed to the right as planned. I noticed a traffic light through trees and thought, "That's not right." I glanced behind me, as I often do, just to make sure no creepy Home Alone vans are following me and noticed a runner and his golden retriever hot on my tail. The din of the dog tags got closer. I was surely going to be passed, but they went left and I went right and that's when I began to think that something had gone wrong. My thoughts..."Landings??? You've got be kidding me? I'm so not where I should be." I was about a mile past where I thought I was going to come out. FUN! So I head east thinking that I'll just keep running until it hurts and then I'll walk.

I kept plugging along. I was in the groove. I wasn't breathing hard and my .mp3 player and various other random thoughts, like Boston Creme Pie, kept me running. I made it all the way to where I began without stopping for a single walk break!! 32:36 minutes. Woohoo! It had to have been at least 3 miles, I thought. According to the stupid Google thing, it was 2.7 miles, which, once again, confirms my turtle tendencies! So me running the Boston Marathon - at least any time soon - may be a bit of a stretch. I guess I can take comfort in knowing that I can tackle a Boston Creme Pie any day of the week!

....definitely the road less traveled.

After a weekend of fun with the girls I managed to go running yesterday. It probably wasn't the greatest idea to head out running in the afternoon with only coffee and a turkey sandwich in my stomach. It was incredibly hot. Ok, I know 85 degrees isn't hot, but I don't spend much time outdoors during the daylight hours these days so it was hotter than I expected. Mix the heat with being dehydrated and you get me struggling for most of the three miles. Water is my friend, heat is not. At least I managed to run instead of calling it a day and plopping on the couch.

I got some quality time with my nephew last night. He's growing like a weed. My brother needs to stop watering him or something. It turns out that my brother's neighbors are the parents of a bunch of kids we went to elementary through high school with. So they ended up popping over to say Hi. All of their kids that we went to school with are married and have kids. Now that my brother and his wife are the perfect white picket fence family, I always feel like the freak of the family when it comes to the updating other people on the family going-ons. My parents can brag about their grandson, and even my Idaho brother being a cop now. My story always seems to be the same - single, no kids, still in school, and a few cats shy of becoming the freaky cat woman/old maid.

It's all good though. I'll get there eventually - in a very long, roundabout way. I just wish there wasn't this weird stigma attached to still being in school. My mom always says, "I don't know where you got that gene for liking school so much." Neither do I, but I'm glad I have it because it terrifies the crap out of me to think about where I'd be now if I hadn't gone to UW or decided to go back to school to get my Master's. I just have that feeling I wouldn't be as happy and optimistic as I am now had I taken another path.

Oh, and working all day, by myself, in this huge building, is incredibly boring.

Ivory Tower Inadequacy

It amazes me how one hallway can be so intimidating while at the same time be so welcoming and inspiring. It makes no difference what time of day, what my mission is or how long I'm there, a visit to the History department is always a thought provoking trip. I get this overwhelming feeling that I'm surrounded by so many intelligent people and that I'm so entirely inadequate to be in the same league with any of them. That's not to imply that I am in the same league - I'm not. I realize they are professors, and I'm a meager student. It just seems like that even after years of studying, I'll never reach their level of expertise. That certainly won't discourage me from trying though. Any visit to the department just leaves me more motivated to try harder. I always say to myself when leaving, "I'm just going to have to work harder. And read more!"

Dr. Smoak was the only person I passed in the hall today. Of all the people I had to pass, it would be him. I'm in awe of this guy. I've only had one class with him and was convinced that if that's what it takes to be a professor, I could never hack it. He's the type of guy that if you were to see him on the street, you'd know he was smart. He looks the part. He's not very gregarious though, which is very odd for a history professor. I think that adds to his mystique. Anywho, I had a horrifying thought while walking back to my motorcycle....What if I'm appointed as his GTA in the fall? It was the most overwhelming "Holy Chickens" moment ever, causing me to stop briefly in panic. "I'm just going to have to work harder. And read more! ... I'm just going to have to work harder. And read more!" That may become my new mantra in life. I'll have it printed on t-shirts. Maybe I can sell them to other inadequate graduate students.

Grrr, I'm frustrated...among other things.

I want to vent. About what? I'm not sure. Everything, possibly. I just know that I'm bored and frustrated, so something must be up. I had the grand plan to get up this morning and run. The phone alarm went off at 4:45. My first thought was, "No bleepin' way am I going running!" I went back to sleep. The floor is painful. The first few nights, the floor wasn't so bad. It helped my back feel straight and not so kinky. Now, the floor hurts. It's hard and it's cold. One more day was all I needed to finish painting but nooooo, I had to go back to work. Now the entire contents of my bedroom are still strewn about my living room. I'm tripping. I'm stubbing my toes. I'm panicking because I keep losing my cat in the mess and think that he's either squashed or asphyxiated from paint fumes. I'm almost certain the damn cat doesn't know his name. He only appears when I rattle the food dish. Then I feel guilty for teasing him with food and end up feeding him some. No wonder he's over weight. It's probably just one sick game to him.

Between another brutal night of volleyball and a weekend of painting and sleeping on the floor, my body feels like it's been a hit by a truck. I haven't been running in like a week a now. A week tomorrow. I hate that thought because it just means it's going to be harder the next time I run. I'm thinking about throwing my whole stupid 8 week plan thing out the window. I didn't need it the first time I started running. I ran when I felt like it for as long as I felt like it. So, I'll just run until I don't want to run any more and see what happens. My level of unrest lately may put me somewhere in Canada by the time I stop.

And I'm SO frickin' on the fence about getting a dog. I filled out the adoption application online today.... and then deleted it. I keep going back and looking at the available dogs. I could make it work. I realize I'm busy but it's like other things that come along in life, you adjust and continue on. I could adjust! Then I hear my mom in my head, "You have a dog." No, I really don't, but she'll just keeping grinding away at me and make me feel guilty for wanting something. Grrrr.

I watched this movie called History Boys the other night - frickin' waste of my time. Stupid British cinema. It was uninspiring and rather crude. And having to watch people smoke like chimneys for two hours made me sick to my stomach. I was more than happy to send that one back to Netflix with a zero rating. I have no clue what movie will show up in my mailbox next - simply because I'm too lazy to log into Netflix and check - but I'm positive it will be a million times better than the rubbish that was History Boys.

Ok, I shall drown my grumpiness with a West Wing mini-marathon.

I'm a bum.

No run today. I'm a bum. A tired bum. I had a brief moment of motivation but it quickly disappeared after unloading my car after shopping. I have paint. I have flowers. And I have the entire weekend to myself to work on my home! I haven't accomplished anything tonight other than play on the computer. I certainly hope this passes before tomorrow!

In my bum like zen state, I've been watching the first season of Gilmore Girls on DVD. It's kind of been a way to heal the wounds of the season ending this past Tuesday. It's nice to know that I can always go back and enjoy the show on DVD any time I like. Or at least seasons One, Two, and Four any time I like. I'll have to fill the gaps, I know. I honestly think I could go for like a year without cable, playing ever DVD and video I own and not have to turn off the television. It's no wonder I go through a DVD player every year.

Anywho, I'm going to drag my bum to bed. Hopefully, I wake up refreshed and very, very motivated!

Light and Breezy

I know I'm posting this out of order and what not but it's my blog and I can do as I wish. Before the movie yesterday I did manage to get in my run/walk for the day. Seeing how I slept in and didn't do the whole morning run/walk thing as planned. As I mentioned before, it's still an attempt at becoming a morning runner! When I finally did get around to the running thing it went really well. I was kind of wimping around all day yesterday because of my strained/sprained ankle from volleyball on Monday. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to run, but apparently it's a different muscle or something than one I use for running because it didn't bother me a bit.

And for the first time I wore my Walt Disney World 1/2 Marathon technical shirt that I got when I picked up my bib number and stuff, like a year and a half ago. It's white, a color I don't usually wear, but I wanted to wear a light long sleeve shirt. Anyways...it's now my favorite shirt. I'm going to try tracking down the brand and style and see if I can just buy plain ones, in other colors. It was just so light and breezy. Yes, I'm a dork. But I'm a dork with a cool shirt!

Congress should be like NASCAR.

Robin Williams for President! Aside from the historical fallacy in the opening scene, Man of the Year was a really funny movie! Just for clarification, NASA did not spend $28 million to develop a pen that could write in space. NASA did not even spend $1 million to develop a pen that could write in space. Yes, maybe the Russians used a pencil, but after Paul C. Fisher designed the Space Pen in 1965, both the Russians and NASA purchased the pens from Fisher to use for their space programs. And right there is proof that I can't escape my history geekiness.

So, back to the movie. There was one point that had me cracking up so hard. And I think it should totally be put into practice immediately. As a candidate running for president, Robin Williams' character Tom Dobbs suggests that Congress should run like NASCAR, with each Senator or Representative having to wear patches that show their sponsors, or in this case, the special interest groups that are dropping bales of cash at their feet. So instead of Oreo, Penzoil, and Budweiser patches there would be Haliburton, Enron, or Phillip Morris patches down the sleeves of the Armani suits all the reps in Congress wear. It sure would make it easier to pick out the liars from the saints. Ha, I have a feeling some suits would just be made entirely of patches!

I think this movie is a keeper. I'll have to add it to the collection if only for the reason that it brings up good points about politics in today's world. We vote by party, not for an individual. We want change, but cower from it when it's time to vote. I think it was all very fitting considering that last night there was a Republican debate with 10 candidates! How many Democrats are there now, 8, 9, 10??? Where are the Independents? How about a handful of green candidates? It all goes back to the patch thing and who is getting the most money. It shouldn't take millions upon millions to get elected to the White House. Then it's no longer the people's house but a bookie's house where everyone comes to collect their dues. Anywho...good movie. Worm gives it two thumbs up! Do Worms even have thumbs??

I am a runner... hear me yawn!

It's amazing how motivating something entirely novel can be. Yesterday I started my attempt at becoming a morning runner. I say attempt because really, one time doesn't make it a habit now does it? Anywho, I was excited about it. I went to bed earlier, made sure I was hydrated, and even had my clothes and shoes laid out so that I wouldn't back out. It was a very quiet run. Only a few cars passed by and only one bicycle. As I ran, I yawned. A lot. It's strange what you can force your body to do when you are still groggy. About 2.5 miles later, I was wide awake and starving. I think the greatest part of the whole running in the morning thing is that for the rest of the day I didn't have to think about going home and running!

I was sure glad that today only calls for an easy walk and no run because when the alarm clock went off this morning, there was no way I was going to get up and go anywhere. Volleyball last night was brutal so I had to work hard, which meant I was wide awake until about midnight. Soooo, I'm walking this evening when I get home, rain or shine. Then I'm going to veg out and watch the very last Gilmore Girls ever. I'm sure sniffles will be involved.

Oh, my REI order arrived over the weekend so I got to pick up the goods yesterday. I got three new shirts that are super wicking like and a pair of shorts! Here's to being geeky looking, dry, and comfortable!!

Home at last. One mile at last.

I ran a mile! Without stopping! I wasn't suppose to, but once I got started I felt pretty good and thought that I'd try to make it to the mile mark to see how long it would take. I have some work to do, I came in at 11:40/mile. It's probably a little lower than that because I'm not sure of the exact spot or so for the mile marker because I'm going off the Pedometer Google thingy. While I may have only confirmed that I'm as slow as a turtle when I run, it was a great feeling to run an entire mile again without feeling completely dead on arrival. It's amazing how much work it takes to gain stamina for the longer runs. I'm going to repeat my run five minutes/walk one minute week of the training plan. It will probably be a painful week considering I haven't done anything but sit in a car for the past four days while eating convenience store junk food.

My adventures in Idaho will surely make for at least one interesting blog when I get around to it. After driving 350 miles home, I've managed to veg for most of the day. I did start on the dreaded laundry pile. I seriously think it grows when I'm not looking. I also watched the sequel to The Librarian. Noah Wyle delivered again! It was just as good, if not better, than the first one. It wasn't totally laced with the stereotypes of the last movie. Or maybe it was and my brain was still in road trip mode and I really didn't care.

I spent a lot of time on my road trip reading my Secret Service book that I started a few weeks ago. Because of this, I decided that I needed a Secret Service fix tonight and thought about the three West Wing episodes where CJ is assigned an agent for protection. I absolutely love the dialog between CJ and Agent Donovan when she is asking whether or not his gym is a good gym and he says, "Yeah, (pauses, tilts his head) We run alongside moving cars!" I realize it's all in the inflection but it's great television. It always deserves the mini marathon. And it's still painful to watch Agent Donovan get shot. Sniff, sniff. Long live The West Wing!

Found: A career path worth considering.

Who'd have thought that a movie could be so thought provoking and relevant to what I've been studying.

I've recently been reading a lot about the stereotypes surrounding the librarian/archivist profession so I had to laugh as I watching The Librarian. Although not all librarians have to jump out of planes at 30,000 feet or tumble down water falls to save the spear that supposedly pierced Jesus on the cross, their lives are not confined to simply re-shelving books, or in an archivist's case, boxes and books. There tends to be the belief that librarians and archivists are detached from the rest of society. They are considered erudite due to their continual quest for knowledge and often portrayed as dis-shelved, absentminded, and lacking a sense of humor. The repository in which they work is often musty, dusty and dungeon like.

While Hollywood likes the stereotype because it's easy to turn a nerdy guy into a hero, most archivists and librarians despise it. They may spend hours pouring over information in search of their own personal spear, holy grail, or other historical gem, but they still remain more sociable then most people I've met and usually look more professional than the people they are hired to assist. There seems to be the stigma of academia attached to those that actually work in the field. A desire for learning shouldn't make one an oddball outcast of society. Most facilities are not ancient and musty, lit by gas lanterns or flames, but rather state of the art, climate controlled buildings that are as secure as Fort Knox.

Does the stereotype damage the profession? As false as it may be, I don't think it really hurts anything. Archivists seek out and preserve the historical record. It may not always be Indiana Jones style but the ramifications of failure can be tremendous. Guaranteed accountability for the actions of others - that's what it's all about. The thought that archivists hold the records that have the ability to change the course of history should override any uneasiness or disgust about what kind of image is portrayed by Hollywood or authors.

Who knows, maybe there is a market out there for a truthful portrayal of an archivist or librarian. It wouldn't necessarily be an action adventure. It could be more of a drama/suspense type story/movie about uncovering the misdeeds of a government or the tobacco industry. I should contemplate writing a series of books, maybe even a children's book.

Note to self: Become an archivist. Write books. Accept Pulitzer Prize(s). Sell rights to Walt Disney Studios. Accept Oscar for Best Screenplay. Retire. Write Memoirs. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

Pain, Progress, and Peanut Butter

Ouch, ouch, ouch. Everything hurts. Yes, I'm going to whine. After three hard games of volleyball on Monday, I was starting to feel my calves tighten. Then yesterday my abs and arms started hurting. After going for my run/walk yesterday, my calves are really tight. They loosened up when I was running but I'm paying for it now. I have the ouch, ouch, ouch with every step. I realize that pain doesn't always mean progress, but to me, this feels like good pain. This is the kind of pain that will eventually make me run stronger and with less effort, so I'm ok with the ouch, ouch, ouch for now. I'm up to the run five minutes, walk one minute part of my schedule now. I may have to drag this part out over two weeks though because of my trip to spud city. Yesterday I also listened to the .mp3 player for the first time since I started running again. It certainly helped me but I don't want to get dependent on it for motivation. Most races don't allow .mp3 players, so I need to be able to hack it without the music.

I've decided that peanut butter will be my downfall in life. I seriously can't get enough of it. The amount that I consume during the day probably defeats the purpose of eating it for protein and carbs prior to running. And on top of all the real peanut butter consumption, I also eat peanut flavored granola bars, and add peanuts to my salad. I tried to break my addiction by searching for almond butter but I had no luck finding any. I've heard it exists so I'll just have to try some other stores!

Ok, this is a strange thought. Why does Planters, the maker of all the wonderful roasted, toasted, salted, dipped, and other various types of peanuts, almonds, cashews, etc., NOT make peanut butter? or almond butter? or cashew butter? You'd think that would be a market they could really take over.

Wanted: One Hot Flyboy

I don't understand why every good history story has to have some pathetic Hollywood love story attached to it in order for it to be made into a movie. It's not that I don't like seeing James Franco playing the romantic lead, it's just disappointing that directors won't let the history part simply stand on its own.

Oh, and I've decided that James Franco is my new obsession. I'm going to ignore the tragedy that was Tristan and Isolde and just remember him as the good little man in uniform that he plays in Annapolis, The Great Raid and now, Flyboys. He kind of reminds me of Jonathan Taylor Thomas. Hmmm, let's compare....

Close enough for me. I know I've seen a picture of JTT that is almost exactly like the James Franco picture but alas, I don't know want to waste too much time on this because really, I'd run away with either of them!

Maybe it's all mental.

You know that feeling when you get a rock stuck in your shoe and your foot kind of hurts? It's just enough to be annoying but not painful enough that you need to stop and empty your shoe. That's how my foot feels. That worries me because when I was training for my half marathon that's the kind of annoyance I had just before the excruciating pain set in. I could understand the pain then, it was an over-training injury, but now, I'm just confused. Maybe it's all mental. I hope it's all mental. Today was a rest day so maybe the slippers will do my feet some good!

Thunder kept me close to home yesterday so I felt like a hamster running on a wheel. I did fit the whole 30 minutes though. I would have went to the gym and ran on the treadmill but some punks were having a party at the clubhouse. I got rained on for the last few minutes, that seemed to make the pain and struggle go away. Why is it that the rain can be so motivating?

Singin' In The Rain...

I wasn't exactly Gene Kelly dancing around light poles or side skipping along but I may as well have been because it was so much fun running through the rain yesterday. I had managed to get about a mile and half into my run before it started to downpour. Luckily, I had warmed up some in the first mile and half that I didn't get too cold once it started to rain. It was pouring! It was energizing! "What a glorious feeling...cause I'm singin' in the rain." Yes, I know I'm a dork, but it was so much fun. I just wish the puddles would have accumulated faster so that I could have pounced around in them.

When I finally neared home, a guy that was getting into his car said, "Now that's dedication!" That made me feel good but I also had to laugh because if he'd only known that I was only just a beginner (again) than it might not have been so impressive!

It's rainy out again today. Or at least it's got the rainy look to it. I haven't seen rain drops yet. Maybe once I head outside it will start raining. I'm sure it won't be nearly as much fun as yesterday. Running four minutes, walking one minute wasn't so hard but it never is the first time because it's new. Today it won't be new, it will be harder and I'm kind of dreading it. I should just curl up on the couch and watch a movie...I wish I owned Singin' In The Rain. That would be perfect.

The mysterious clunk solved????

As I'm pulling out of my parking place this morning, I hear it again. Clunk. My car had been clunking every so often, just when I turned the wheel at the right angle and going at a certain speed. I thought it was my imagination because it was so totally random. Mystery solved...at least I hope. As I'm half way out of my spot I realize there is a Snapple Bottle, or part of one, kind of spinning on the ground. I got out to check my car - why I'm not sure. It's not like I could have fixed it had something been broken. So, I'm thinking that possibly this chunk of Snapple bottle had managed to wedge itself somewhere under my car. I know it wasn't there last night when I pulled into the parking space so it had to be in/under my car. It sounds crazy but my car seemed to be steering better on the way to work. I'm glad I didn't take it into the dealer and have them look at a clunking problem. They probably would have charged me $500 and laughed all the way to the bank.

This week has been crazy hectic but I've managed to stay on my training program. I had a not so nice run on Wednesday because I was running into the wind for most of it. Every time I changed directions, the wind changed too. It was painful and tiring. Yes, I'll take some cheese with my wine. Yesterday I was suppose to have a 30 minute easy walk but got caught up practicing my speech while I was out and about in the neighborhood and sped along for a good 45 minutes. It's amazing how many people are home at 2:30 in the afternoon. Oh and I really, really want a dog. My parents would probably kill me if I got one because they would, at some point, likely have to take care of it when I left town for an internship, and I'm not so sure they would appreciate that. I just really want a dog to take walking/running with me. Maybe I could just borrow random dogs. I'll just start knocking on doors and see what happens...or not.