Case of the Mondays

I’ve probably used that title before.  Sorry!

Today I slept in.  After yesterday’s half marathon, I needed it.  How am I feeling?  Pretty good.  My hip is still pretty sore—I iced and rolled it a bit.  My calves are sore too so I’ve been wearing my compression socks all day.  Otherwise I’m pretty good.  My ankle might be a bit tired as well as my knee…this is all on the right leg.  Must be my longer leg?

Then I had three hours of teaching.  One of my youngest students was a particular challenge today and I feel like I didn’t stay on task with him as much as I would have liked.  I’ll have to do better with him next week.

After teaching Chris and I went to Eau Bistro to try a few things.  We are having our rehearsal dinner there and had only been for Easter Brunch before, never for dinner, so we wanted to try it.  It was awesome!  Even on a Monday night, the service was impeccable and the food was delicious.  I feel confident that our rehearsal dinner will be wonderful.

Life is getting busier over the next few weeks.  I’m looking forward to it.  More importantly, I’m looking forward to Thanksgiving…one of my absolute favorite holidays.  We are spending it with friends and it should be fantastic.  I am making a couple of desserts.

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Secrets of adulthood:  Sometimes even when things are a disaster and you are fighting with somebody you love, you still stop in the middle of it to watch Burn Notice.  As a child, you would never think you could put your emotions on hold and do something unrelated and pretend that everything is fine.  As an adult, you realize that life goes on, sometimes you need a break, and sometimes you just want to take your mind off things and watch Burn Notice.  Whatever you are fighting about will still be there afterwards.  This goes for all different things, i.e. sometimes you have to answer a work call in the middle of a personal crisis, or you have to go to work even when you are upset, or sometimes you have to stay in a situation until you can leave and go cry in the bathroom.  (This I learned in school—there was a bathroom at my college that invariably some girl would be crying in—we would stick it out as long as needed and then ultimately run down the hall and collapse in the bathroom stall, coming out later and pretending nothing had happened.) 

30 days of Thanksgiving:  I’m thankful for delicious food and wine.  I had a fantastic dinner this evening with Chris and we both enjoyed everything we ordered.  I can’t wait to share that food with my closest friends and family.

Ben Folds with the SLSO

I am generally a giant classical music nerd.  I listen to classical music or NPR generally in life, never any other music.  Except for some reason I got introduced to Ben Folds in the early 2000’s and LOVE his music.  I have all his CD’s (albums? what do I even call them?) and have been to a concert in Cleveland.  So when I heard the St Louis Symphony was playing a concert with him this fall, I jumped on those tickets. 

That’s tonight! 

Ben Folds

You can read an article from the St Louis Dispatch about the concert here.

30 days of Thanskgiving: I’m thankful for the opportunity to go to the concert tonight!  I hope it’s awesome!

Disclaimer:  A couple years ago I got asked to play with Ben Folds with the Columbus Symphony and had to turn it down due to a prior commitment.  So this is better!

Note to readers:  The concerts with Chamber Project St Louis went really well. We could have used a bigger audience on Thursday night but Friday night was packed.  I don’t play with the group for a few months but there is another performance coming up soon.  Check out the website and come out, support local arts!! 

Last half marathon of the year

I promise.

St Louis Track Club Half Marathon.

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2:35:56.  My second fastest half!!

It was a tough course, always either uphill or downhill.  We started in Clayton and ran into Forest Park and then back. My hip was bugging me so I ended up having to walk more than I had hoped, and then I decided to run faster when I ran since that didn’t hurt any more.  I’m not sure if that was the best plan as far as pacing, but I figured since I was walking due to pain rather than being out of breath it made sense.  I had run into Stephanie from Off the Eaten Path at the start of the race and ended up being right behind her the entire race (I used her as my pacer.) 

And that’s it for the year.  I’m not running any more half marathons until next year.  This has been a crazy month of races, but I’m glad I did them all! 

Two weeks:  St Louis Track Club Marathon Relay.  Team of 4, each of us runs two legs of approximately 3 miles.  Should be a cake walk, ha!

Post race meal:  went with Jen to the Three Monkeys and had an awesome brunch buffet.  It wasn’t that the food was so great, but it was unlimited and included biscuits and gravy.  I would recommend it as a great post-race restaurant! 

Bogart’s

I asked my friend Vanessa if she wanted to get dinner tonight and she suggested Bogart’s.  I LOVE this place.  In fact, the cashier even recognized me and asked me "you come here pretty often, right?"  I had to admit, I guess I do, at least lately.  I’m obsessed with the sides more than the meat itself, as you might expect.  (For me, a meal is made by the sides, especially a meal such as Thanksgiving.)

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That potato salad and the beans are just simply amazing.  Friends coming into town for my wedding, I recommend you visit Bogart’s!

And yes, I ate ALL of that.  I wanted a big meal before the last half marathon of the year (for me).

I’m thankful today for delicious food and good friends 🙂 

Goal for tomorrow’s race:  Stay calm and finish.  I did my fastest two weeks ago, this is just for fun.  I want to push myself, but I’m not going to be upset if I don’t have a PR (personal record.)  Plus I need to work off all the pork I just ate.  Wish me luck!

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Not sure what happened to the color in the second picture, but I love the shirt!  I almost want to wear it as my top layer for tomorrow’s race, but I probably won’t. 

TGIF

Who used to watch Full House?  It was the highlight of the week, right?

The concert last night went well!  I was very crabby because it was freezing in the Chapel, and I don’t like the cold.  I also don’t like the heat.  Call me a first world girl, but I love temperatures between 68 and 75 or so…especially 72.  My feet and hands get cold fast and take forever to warm up, so that makes it particularly challenging to play (hands, not feet.)

We repeat the program tonight at the Tavern of Fine Arts at 8 pm.  If you are looking for a relaxing activity for the evening, come out and hear us play!  (Chamber Project St Louis)

Mike said I was acting like an 82 year old woman in our workout this morning.  I was crabby and kept complaining that the weights were heavy (they totally were heavy, darned weights).  I was also tired.  I told him I needed to act 82 on occasion to average out the days I act like I’m 5 years old.  Besides which, he should know by now that Friday is my whiny workout day.  I’m usually tired, and often annoyed by the whole “Friday” mentality everybody gets except as a musician I usually have two more solid days of work until Monday morning (my weekend!).  (Yes, I’m still crabby.)

So today’s crabbiness certainly makes the 30 days of Thanksgiving a bit tougher.  Perhaps more important though?  What I am thankful for today?

I’m thankful because:  the sun is shining!  It’s cool but sunny.  Perfect running weather (and is supposed to stay all weekend, Sunday forecast is 68 and sunny!).  Some of you may recall I have one more half marathon to run this fall, and it’s on Sunday.  I’m looking forward to stuffing my face afterwards.

Wedding RSVPs

I know we probably sent out our invitations too early, but still, people could go ahead and RSVP for the wedding, right?  They do have about a month until the deadline.  I’m simply impatient. 

But still.  Less than a third have replied. 

It’s fine.  You give people a deadline, they will definitely wait until that deadline.  I do it all the time.  Sometimes I even ignore the deadline entirely!

We’ve finished our honeymoon plans!  Hotel, flight, cruise, all booked and paid for.

I’ve also got all my wedding day jewelry planned out and purchased.  I got two things on etsy…of course.

Next week I’m doing my hair trial with my hairdresser.  I hope my idea works out!

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Should the guys wear bow ties for the wedding?

Today: I’m thankful that my wedding will be done in two months, we’ll be married (!), and YOU can be thankful that I won’t be talking about wedding planning anymore!  Two months to go…

thoughts about violin, teaching, running, life.