Friend Friday: Personal Uniform

Vahni from Grit and Glamour has a post several weeks ago in which she outlined her personal uniform or outfit formula as she dubbed it.


1. What’s your go-to outfit formula?
A dress. Or a dress and a cardigan. You can throw that on and be ready in less than a minute.  Also they are comfortable like workout clothes so they are my latest go-to outfit.  Previously it was jeans and a simple shirt for the weekend or dress pants and a sweater for work.  Now I'm not a fan of my jeans. They are too tight. I don't want to buy new jeans because I hope the hope that once I get out of my workout rut that they will all fit again. I'm told I should just buy some fat jeans. I probably should. They'll probably be my skinny jeans in a few years anyway.

2. How did you come about this formula?
Oh I answered this above... the putting on a few lbs part and also realizing last year that dresses were pretty and added flavor.  I also discovered it last July 5 when I was going to a picnic but still in PJs 2 minutes before I had to leave. I couldn't believe how fast I got ready.

3. Do you have different formulas for different occasions in your life?
Not really anymore. Before it was jeans for anything that wasn't work.  I have clothes I wear to work. Then on the weekends I wear those same clothes or I wear jeans with those same shirts. If I go out on an evening (which is rare), I just wear my standard. Others have fancier non-work appropriate clothes but I don't have that.

4. Has it morphed over the years?
Yes. A dress was never even part of my wardrobe at all. Back in the day (middle school and high school) I hate dresses because my gut was noticeable even though I was skinny everywhere else. Now I'm realizing that there are many styles and I can hide my gut. Plus I'm not as skinny as I was back then.  Up until a few years ago, I wore athletic shoes with my jeans on the weekends. I do not anymore and I feel it makes the same outfit just so much better. Shoes really do make or break and outfit.

5. Which other blogger’s outfit formula would you like to swipe?
I have no idea. We are all similar if I like them. There is no one person that is far enough off from me that I can think of. There are plenty with a similar formula to me and I love that. It makes me seem not crazy and not out of style.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

03:18:57 PM - I was supposed to call someone in 15 min so I set my timer. Then called them exactly 15 min later and no answer. sigh.
06:55:47 PM - I may be about to pass out. Good thing my run is over
07:31:12 PM - it was far too hot outside to run, yet I ran anyway. Then I I stood out in the sun more and talked. I'm smart.
09:25:21 PM - Running in the sun and heat sure made me exhausted.
10:01:06 PM - It is about bedtime. I'm still in my robe from my shower hours ago.
11:06:11 PM - Exhausted but not sleepy tired.
11:09:18 PM - @BodyMediaFIT I feel like you are going to regret giving me your email address. All I do is email you.
11:10:22 PM - @BodyMediaFIT I wish I did that today. Yoga at 11:00 was extra hard due to lack of food.
11:13:47 PM - @BodyMediaFIT I did that today and didn't know you told me too. A friend may be buying one :)

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

6.15 - Happy Birthday Callie

Necklace: Target
Dress: Target
Shoes: Target
...wow all from Target

For my Style the Scavenged Seven, the dress part of it. 6/7 there for the first week and it's only mid week.

I may or may not appear tan in these pictures.  I was tan from the bottle. It was probably the best it worked, then it started going downhill after that. It's quite an art form. I didn't use any of it on my face. I did put it on my neckline, arms, and legs.

Poly discovered a new bag to sit on. She would bring back the ponytail and put it right on my backpack. It was her home base.

I had leftover Velveeta Shells and Cheese for lunch.  I ran after that. I was going to run in the morning but didn't fit it in. Instead of feeling guilty about it, I just went for a quick run at lunch.

Poly found a good napping spot on my backpack. It is moved from the position in the collage above. 

After work I was going to Callie's to celebrate her birthday.  I ended up working 1 hour longer than I thought so my times weren't as planned when getting to Callie's.  I stopped at Giant Eagle to buy a cake too. Then I was going to pick up Timmy, even though I didn't know why. I was supposed to run with Callie so I didn't know what he would do while we ran. Well I get to my parents and he won't leave. He said the party doesn't start until 8. Sigh. I didn't get to run with Callie.   Then we got to Callie's around 8.  They weren't ready. But I didn't even know a yard party was official so if we would have run, it would have been OK. I had running clothes in the car. 

On the Turnpike on the way to my parents I saw a Megabus for the first time.

When we got to Callie's, her dogs were lounging around. Callie wore them out running with them for so long.  Calle's mom doesn't allow the dogs on her couches so pretend you didn't even see it above :)

Calle's party was for her birthday.  Her brother put her present up too high.   Callie's mom had a cake and a pie. Callie didn't want everyone to sing to her. I know her pain.  After the singing, Callie's mom went and got the cake I bought.  So there were 6 people for 3 cakes and 3 kinds of ice cream.   It was chilly but I got athletic shorts from the car and put them on under my dress and it was a lot better.   Timmy got cold and used wrapping paper as a blanket. He said it was warm.   My parents came over after awhile and brought me a hoodie.  Callie fell asleep around 10:30 but we did not leave yet.  Timmy left with my parents but came back with his own car so he could stay for ages. He brought 3 people on his way back but Callie was asleep so never even saw them.

I love Callie's family. I also love that they just shout across the street to the neighbors to come over to get birthday cake.

I was going to take work clothes and PJs just in case it got too late, but Poly was on my backpack when I left and I felt bad so I didn't bring it with me.   I left Callie's around 1.  We played Encore around the fire.  We played "campfire" rules where you don't actually follow the real rules or use the timer.

I was out really late. I drove the whole way home without falling asleep or having to stop to take a nap.

6.14

Shirt: Kohl's
Skirt: Limited
Shoes: Famous Footwear
Necklace: Sears
For my Style the Scavenged Seven, the shirt and shoes was part of it. I wore this shirt in Dave's favorite outfit/daily picture from May so I chose it.

Before work, Poly thought I was packing but really I was just grabbing socks out of my duffle bag. She thought I was packing and went and sat on my stuff. She is too cute.

So my fake tan from a bottle left a tan line from my bodymedia fit. The tan was there but I guess it rubbed off. Sad times.  Someone even commented I had a tan line from my armband. I didn't tell them it was fake tan from a bottle.  That fake tan from a bottle is an art. It is so hard to get it right.  I had only used it on my arms and legs. My mom thought it was nice but up close my legs were awful.  My legs just end up streaky. I even did research and the Jergen's Natural Glow one that I use other people gave it great reviews. To top it off, it also rubbed off on my towels and wash rags. It was nice until you go to do something. Sigh.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

12:08:39 AM - @FashionMomma22 your anniversary is on my birthday!
12:10:53 AM - @BodyMediaFIT this METS tweet is the same time as our METS emails ha. And that is the site I used.
05:39:03 PM - @iamoddd how do you just make up a prescription?
05:39:48 PM - Traffic: 1 me:0. I got hacked and just missed a light.
05:41:08 PM - Traffic:2
05:44:17 PM - How many lights can I just miss in one trip? Traffic: 2
05:51:51 PM - I hate driving
10:07:49 PM - I'm 2 weeks behind on blogging. I'll never catch up.
11:00:12 PM - I never get as much done as I want to.
11:14:31 PM - @ADayinLifeToo I still have yet to watch it. Now I'm not excited.
11:15:14 PM - @fmeissner359 so now you need to plan more work trips
11:17:15 PM - @missylizzylucy the more workouts the better. What did you end up doing?
11:19:33 PM - @BodyMediaFIT more workouts and eating fewer zebra cakes (and other sweets) I've been a real workout slacker lately and it shows.
11:24:51 PM - @FatGirlvsWorld we still have 1 more day. I'll make modality 1. But 2 I lifted 1 time instead of 10
11:26:52 PM - @FatGirlvsWorld I always heard 1200 too
11:29:04 PM - @mikecherepko is that good or bad?
11:33:42 PM - @tcassino yea. Seems weird for a 7 yr old.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

6.13

Shirt: NY&Co
Skirt: NY&Co
Shoes: Macy's
Necklace: Sears

After I got to work I realized I wore this skirt 2 days in a row that I went to work. Thursday and Monday. I did wash it over the weekend but I usually don't repeat stuff like that.

For my Style the Scavenged Seven, the shirt and shoes were part of it. 3/7 there for the first week.

I ran in the morning. I worked. Same old stuff.

6.12 - Pirate Game

Shirt: F21 (2010)
Jeans: Indi (January 2011)
Shoes: Kohl's (Summer 2010)

For my Style the Scavenged Seven (just chose that name now), the shirt and shoes was part of it. I never took a photo of all the things I chose, which is highly unlike me.

I slept at my parents and had to head home right away because Dave wanted to go to the afternoon game.  It was an extremely boring game. The first few innings only had 3 batters for each 3 outs.   I did eat ballpark food that is yummy. My pants did get too tight and my gut bulged over them.   Lunch #1 was nachos with cheese and french fries (Dave had a hot dog too). Then lunch #2 was the same exact thing. I was unable to finish the nachos on the 2nd round though.

After the game I took a long nap.  I also read. I didn't do too much. I did not exercise.

I stayed up late reading. Poly hung out with me while I read.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

07:44:20 AM - I'm too fat for my gray pants. So I'm wearing a skirt.
08:08:27 AM - @mikecherepko Are you losing weight? I'm staying the same but losing all my muscle with only lifting 1-2 times/month instead of 8+
10:05:16 AM - In a meeting and my stomach is growling.
10:12:43 AM - @LaurelHeather you actually barely know me. But its cool.
10:13:41 AM - @fmeissner359 did you ever get your bag?
10:20:24 AM - @angelineevans when I moved out after college. But then we found stuff later too. Also I gave them some back to hold onto for awhile once
10:34:17 AM - @FashionMomma22 your anniversary is on NY birthday!
11:35:29 PM - Just leaving the cobana bar. I'm out late. It was a fun time. I think @fmeissner359 enjoyed it too.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

6.11 - Vet, Callie

We took Poly to her yearly vet appointment.

She was very good. On the way there she pushed on each mesh part of the cage hoping to get out.
On her way home she was much better.  She really wanted out so in the garage, I opened the thing. She went right to the front seat.

Then it was time to get ready for Callie's race aka grab some of my gummie things.   Then since I wasn't going to run with her I was packing additional and going through shorts that don't fit me. Poly tried to sabotage and make me late.  I knew I wasn't running because Callie texted me to say she sprained her ankle 5 miles into her 77 mile run. That meant I wouldn't need to pace her from miles 53-63. She ran until mile 20 because she thought she might try to push through it because she felt bad since I was looking forward to pacing her for a full year. In 2010, she won for Women.  Too bad for her ankle because the weather was so much better this year so she could have beat her last time if only she didn't hurt herself.  They do warn you that the terrain is bad. She's even used to trail running.

After going to my parents, we went to Flat Rock. It's in Ligonier. I was not told it was swimming type place, but also it was cold so I was ok in my real clothes.

Then we spent an hour playing in Callie's neighbor's yard. Callie's two dogs had fun with the two neighbor dogs.  That ball is the ball that all the dogs had to mark.

We were at Callie's so long that Callie fell asleep. Timmy was the one that drove, so I had to rely on him for when I could leave. He won't leave until he is sure he overstayed his welcome. Then I spent the night at my parents house.

Run - 2.56 mi (6/25) - Standard Loop

I was motivated to run after socializing with people who workout. I was especially motivated since some of those people were trainers.  Then I was extra motivated because I finished reading RUN! Before I ran I made plans to run with Christina on Sunday and I spent so long reading that I decided to keep my run to the basic loop.

I definitely started out great. I felt great. Then right around mile 2 I felt like I hit the wall. I started getting a side cramp. I did go running at 11 AM and I didn't eat or drink anything all day.  Still not too bad for a run around the block.  Last time I ran my first mile was 8:31 and my second was 9:40.  This was my quickest run yet.  I wish the local track wasn't closed for the summer. I need to do some intervals. I want to do some intervals.  I am not sure about the 2nd closest track. The entrance I always drive by is blocked off due to construction. The school has a 2nd entrance. I need to check it out to see if the track is open.

This was my first workout in 10 days. (I went on a few walks in there but didn't count that as exercise.)

6.10 - 9/80 Day off

I broke my rule. I wore black and brown... well the shoes aren't quite brown. They did match my purse. So there is that.

Dress: Athleta
Shoes: Target
Necklace: Sears (I wore purple since my toenails are painted purple)

I wear dresses because they are as comfortable as pajamas, I can eat in them without pain from something constricting around my stomach, and they look nice.

So do my legs look excessively pale to you? How about my feet?  I swear I never see another fashion blogger as pale. Perhaps I should hide my paleness with pants and long sleeves. I feel like I can't even enjoy how cute the sandals are because it is hard to look around the paleness.

Perhaps one of these days I'll get a good jumping shot.

(update: I forgot to show the pictures of me with my purse.)

I had the day off work but Dave did not.  I was going to make my admin cookies for her birthday and take them to work on Thursday but I forgot to make them. Then I thought I'd make them Thursday night and send them in with Dave. I totally forgot about making them when I got home from Mad Mex.  Then I thought I'd make some cookies Friday morning and meet Dave for lunch and take them in. I almost started making them then I thought the smoke alarm would go off because the oven needs to be cleaned so I didn't make them.  Instead, I picked Dave up and we went to a bakery in Wexford.  I took them in and she thought it was really sweet. It was nice but then I realized I didn't get home until 2pm and yet again I wasted a 9/80 day off.

I watched some TV with Dave and went to sleep reasonably early.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

07:30:53 AM - About to run with Christina. Kind of scared to run so long / far. It has been 3 months.
10:07:39 AM - I ran 5 miles today then spent longer analyzing running data than I spent working out. I better shower now.
04:55:34 PM - @LaurelHeather So why is it when I ask a question you always assume it is to "get gossip" instead of to actually find out about you?
11:22:38 PM - @BodyMediaFIT running 5 mikes. But wanted to do more.
11:26:00 PM - @BodyMediaFIT I refrained from buying chip and dip at the grocery store. Does that count?

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Run 6.26.11 - 5 miles

I ran at North Park today. In the winter, I did almost all of my outside runs there but I haven't completed a loop there since my 30k on March 26. (I did go there to run one other time and turned around after a little over a mile. 

I went with Christina and we ran 1 loop. We considered running two but since I hadn't run more than 3.8 miles continuously in the past 3 months, I figured it wasn't the best idea to push it.  Plus we talked a lot this time around. There was a lot more story telling on my part so I got wiped out.  My time wasn't as good as I would have liked but with all the talking, I'd say it was pretty good.  The weather was nice but it did feel a little warm.  It was nice to run at 7:30 AM and then get it done and out of the way.  I have spend longer updating my excel file and analyzing data than it took for me to run. Good thing I don't have a life.

Now that it is 4 hour since I finished running, my legs are sore. I feel tired.   When you get used to running far (more than 10 miles) a 5 mile run is short and feels that way but since I haven't run this long in 3 months, I'm feeling it.

We ran clockwise around the lake. I prefer going counter clockwise. We also went counter clockwise for the 30k and that's what made my knee hurt. 

I have 8 days until a 5k. Last year I came in 2nd in my age group. I do not see that happening.  1 year ago, I ran at north park for distance and not speed and still had a pace of 9:06.  Looking at my old data, I was running between 8:30-9:10 pace for all my runs. This year I'm doing 9-9:50 pace besides today's run.  Last year my time was 26:24 for the race on July 4.  I wonder what my time will be this year.

What training should I do in one week's time to be a little faster?

Random Memory: Group Lunch

While folding laundry I remembered this and started thinking about. Not sure how my mind jumped there though.

In 2006, Dave and I were in the same group.  Our group was going to Gateway Grill for some pizza. It was a reward for using the recourse planning tool.  Well since Dave and I are in the same group, I figured we would carpool. Also we normally ate lunch everyday together (with other people too) but we always walked down together. So this also made me think we'd be going together.   Well it is time to leave and I can't find him. I try to call his cell. I walk to the bathroom to see if he's in route. I do all of these things a few times. I talk to other people in the group who ask me if I need a ride and I tell them all no that I am carpooling with Dave and I just need to find him.  Eventually nobody is left in the entire group.  I decide to head there and hope that Dave's car is in the parking lot. We carpooled to work and Dave drove so if Dave drove to lunch then I would be in trouble.

While walking to the car, my manager calls my cell. Everyone is at lunch but me and 1 other person (who I had just talked to).  Dave didn't realize I wasn't there until everyone was there and they were trying to figure out who the two were that were missing. Then he says Uh Oh. He doesn't have his phone so my manager calls.

I get there and have to sit on the end. Everyone makes a big deal about how I'm late and how Dave is in trouble.

After lunch Dave and I drive back together. When we got in the car, we saw other coworkers looking at us and laughing.

So there you have it... the time Dave left for lunch without me.

Dave got to lunch because someone in his row said she had a van and could drive 5 others and would Dave want a ride. He said OK. He didn't even think about me.

Have any of you ever had an experience like that?

(I thought I might have written about this before when I had LJ but I can't find it. but it might be there. It'd help if I knew if this was in 2006 or 2007 too.)

A Day's Worth of Twitter

09:09:46 AM - I'm sitting in the same room as @polahbea (mere feet apart) and we are emailing each other
11:39:19 AM - That run was rough... rough rough rough. It started out cool so I started out running too fast.
12:54:17 PM - I totally forgot to take my daily picture. I even wore 2 different outfits. And one was pretty nice :(
02:12:03 PM - I can't believe I'm in a comic book store.
02:46:17 PM - I can't believe I'm at another comic book store.
02:50:23 PM - The store has a cat. http://lockerz.com/s/114083940
03:48:00 PM - @briecs Dave was Looking for something.
04:17:44 PM - @TracyMorganLove nice. I only ran 2.5 miles
06:24:10 PM - I want to get up but Poly is too comfy and I don't want to disturb her http://lockerz.com/s/114143861
08:58:44 PM - Now my husband and I are @BodyMediaFIT buddies. We have loading data/analyzing data parties.
11:13:44 PM - @BodyMediaFIT we already did a walk. He'll always win. He burns about double what I do just sitting on the couch.
11:19:00 PM - @BodyMediaFIT 125 in 30 min and normal is 32 cal. His was 320 for 30 min. Normal burn in 30 min was 74. how about you?

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

6.9 - Happy Hour

Skirt: NY&Co. (2010)
Sweater: NY&Co (2007)
Shoes: JCP (2010)
Necklace: Sears (2010)

I had a red necklace and red shoes. I felt like I needed a red belt or something. Perhaps next time.

This skirt sure spun while walking. I was constantly fixing it all day. Why is it that some skirts spin an some do not? This skirt is washable and dryable and it washes really well. I like it more and more when I realize how I don't have to iron it. I like it less and less when I remember how it spins when I wear it.  Also if I forget to wear a slip, the zipper area on the left side snags up my pantyhose.

I bought lunch in the building 4 cafe. I want to know why the luncheat is so much thicker in building 4 versus building 1.  I commented that the green peppers are my favorite part and asked for a lot. She really gave me a lot. It was nice.

After work, a few of us went to happy hour at Mad Mex.  We went late so Sarah could still go to Body Pump.  It was a fun time. It was probably the most fun yet. There were 5 of us there. Too bad we only go about once every 6 months.  I really wish other people would organize a happy hour and invite me. I'm bad at organizing things. Nobody is ever that interested. I always have to convince people to go.

Poly was trying to help me put my shoes away.

Poly uses my pants as a pillow.

The house is still a mess from rearranging the rooms on Saturday. Everything is not where it goes yet. It takes way longer than I remembered to move rooms but we do have a lot more stuff now.

Poly was playing. I tried to use the picasa feature to create a movie. It is short but it was a first try. I just picked the first song I came to alphabetically. Since I made this I have tried to make more and they always partially seem to work but never get created.  Not sure why.   so for now you are stuck with only this one.  Isn't Poly cute though?  I need to figure out how to weave in actual video that I take with pictures I take.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

08:04:44 AM - I was carrying stuff up the steps and I fell. At least going up is better than going down. But still ... ouch
10:15:22 AM - I'm in a rut. I haven't worked out in about a week.
11:06:45 AM - We are finally doing stuff in the yard and it starts raining. http://lockerz.com/s/113678840
11:17:08 PM - Well that was a 6 hour happy hour. I'm pretty sure it wasn't a happy hour since it lasted so long.
11:37:28 PM - @LaurelHeather I'm that good. And I didn't drink that much. Mainly talked.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Friend Friday: Fashion Realizations

According to Katy:

This was partly fueled by a suggestion from Suz of MissVinylAhoy and partly by my own realization that I like some odd things since I started blogging – things I never would have looked twice at before.

1. Since you began blogging do you notice a change in the types of things you gravitate towards while shopping?
I don't do nearly enough shopping. I have also been taking my daily picture for 6 years so I have had a long evolution.  I am a lot more willing to try on new things, but that started right before I started knowing about fashion blogging.  I think I just learn about what is out there better since I don't read magazines and don't go shopping enough to see everything that is out there at a given time.  I do look for more patterns but I'm not sure if it is blogging or just looking at my own calendar site that caused me to want more of that.

2. Do you find, as a fashion blogger, that you dress differently from your family and friends? Do they comment on that?
Depending on who it is then yes and yes.  I often get comments about being dressed up or dressing really nice.  I often get comments about being trendy or having the current style yet what I'm wearing that day I have had for 5 years

3. What’s the weirdest fashion that you secretly like, even if you aren’t bold enough to wear it?
I don't know if this is a fashion but I wish I could wear some nice suspenders.

4. Looking at current trends – what would you like to try but need to build up the courage to do?
Well based on my previous posts I don't even know what the current trends really are.  But even after doing my research if I liked it, I wanted to try it and tried it or didn't try it because I didn't own it.  I didn't not try a trend because of the courage.

5. Toot someone’s horn – what fashion blogger out there inspires you with her bold fashion choices?
I don't know if it is inspiration by bold fashion choices or inspiration by fashion I like. I have noticed the ones that inspire me the most change. I get the most inspiration from Liz, Angeline, and Ashley currently.

A Day's Worth of Twitter

07:24:57 AM - I was dressed like a Park Ranger http://t.co/3mO4dEL
07:29:49 AM - This morning I put on 3 necklaces to have my husband pick which one I should wear. He said they all looked good. So I'm wearing them all!
07:30:50 AM - @missylizzylucy absolutely. Nachos are also an appropriate lunch. Breakfast might be pushing it though.
09:41:33 AM - my feet are cold
10:38:46 PM - @tcassino good. Fewer people so I could do embossing and stuff that is time consuming.
10:49:17 PM - @reedaboutme I heard is is closer to 20 now. Was less before buy since housing crisis it is higher.
10:53:50 PM - @TheNewChrissy usually sites are the opposite.
10:55:03 PM - @wwanw some people wear two belts. How do you feel about that?
10:56:02 PM - @BodyMedia I hope it is me. It would make a nice gift
11:06:05 PM - I got BBQ sauce all down my shirt and skirt at the picnic. Hope it comes out.
11:06:45 PM - @BodyMedia I was behind on tweets. I read who the winner was a few minutes later
11:07:46 PM - @LaurelHeather the creepier the better

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Sleeping In

This is a main reason I end up sleeping in.  Who could get up with such a cute little cat on them? Also she was purring up a storm

Photo taken: 6/17/11

6.8 - Park Ranger

Tuesday night I asked Dave if I should dress like a park ranger the following day. He said yes so I did.

Pants: Express - April 2007 or earlier
Shirt: Express - July 2007 or earlier
Tank: Sam's Club
Shoes: Payless
Necklace: Sears

Wow does my elbow look a little weird in that middle picture to anyone else?

Poly woke up with me. We hung out together before I headed to work. Now Wednesday is normally my telecommuting day but I had to go into the office to get my new laptop. My old one gave me such trouble that I didn't want to postpone getting it at all.  My files were being backed up in the morning so I couldn't even use my computer if I got to work at 7 like I had been the previous 2 days so I wasted some time cropping pictures at home in the morning before work.

I was just about to get my computer around 10:30. I had even shut down my old one to give it to the guy and the fire alarm goes off. It was a drill but still wasted 15 minutes.  Then setting up the new one wasted over an hour and I still didn't have everything how I wanted it. I worked through lunch and ate at my desk because of all the computer wasting time and also because I had to leave early to get an allergy shot. I could have had the full 9 hours in but since I couldn't use my computer starting at 7 I figured it was pointless to get to work that early.

I left work and headed for may allergy shot. I stopped at the rest stop on the turnpike for a nap. I fell asleep for what turned out to be 5 minutes.  Then traffic was so backed up that I arrived about 15 minutes later than I thought. I got my shot and had to wait 20 minutes. Then there was more traffic. I was late meeting Timmy and Art, but they didn't mind. I treated them as payment for them installing our hose bib last year. Too bad my pants got tight after my lunch, because they were already tight when I started dinner. It made me feel full too fast and I didn't eat all my food.

After dinner, the three of us headed to Sears to buy some Father's Day gifts.  Then I headed home. Timmy and Art headed home too but they made a pit stop on the way and didn't get home for a few hours.  I called my mom on the way home and talked to her while driving. There is no rest stop on the turnpike going west so I couldn't have napped if I wanted to.

 I had 2 similar khakis and the ones below might the other pair but look how similar. 4 years and still wearing the same stuff.  The packs were a big looser back then. 

July 2007

A Day's Worth of Twitter

07:31:11 AM - @missylizzylucy wrote a feature for my blog. It's great. Check it out http://bit.ly/jTVOZB
10:23:25 AM - @BodyMediaFIT Not yet. He doesn't think it'd be beneficial for him. I disagree. His birthday is coming up though :)
10:33:36 AM - Fell asleep reading. Kept waking up and trying to read more. It never worked. ... That was last night. Guess I failed at hitting send
09:18:27 PM - Mowing was hard work.

You can find me as @smilincolleen on Twitter.

Liz on Why I run

finishing the 2011 National 1/2 Marathon

Hey Scrap and Run readers, It's Liz from Reston Style (and the unknown blog 366 to 30) and besides being a blogger, I'm a runner.

I ran track for one season in high school, but really only pole vaulted. I started running on and off back in 2000, during my freshman year of college when I was training with the swim team and lacrosse team. Even though I ran, I didn't think of myself as a runner. Being a runner is a mentality. Something changes when you start to think of yourself as a runner, and that happened to me in August of 2008.



my bestie, Erin and I pose after our first 10k in 2008 (the date is wrong on the picture)

My best friend, Erin, and I started working out in a gym at the beginning of 2008 so that she could get ready for her wedding in April. After the wedding we decided to try to take our workouts outside, and even though Erin always hated running, it was her idea to go for a run. We started just trying to make it through 20 minutes at a slow pace. It was misery! Erin even proclaimed that she would rather walk five miles than run one, yet we continued to do it two to three times a week through June. Then we signed up for a 5k in July. We were on our way, but I didn't think of myself as a runner yet.

The switch happened when Erin and I started following Jeff Galloway's 5k/10k training plan. I had signed up for the Army 10 Miler (not being a runner, I did it the year before wearing my mom's number) and needed a plan to follow. It was in the middle of going through the 5k training plan for the first time, on an 8 mile long run when Erin recanted her statement saying that she would rather run five miles than walk one. Over the course of completing the training plan my one mile time dropped from 7:59 to 7:01 and Erin's dropped from 9:20 to 8:15, and we ran an 11 mile long run in a hurricane that we officially called ourselves runners.

I have now run 5 half marathons (3 of them, sub 2 hours), 4 ten milers, and numerous 5 and 10k's and am training for my first marathon. I cover between 25 and 30 miles a week at this point, but will be increasing that as my marathon training schedule goes on. I cross train with walking, swimming, biking, and indoor rock climbing. I run using Jeff Galloway's run/walk program, and I attribute that to my success as a runner.



Manda, me, Josh, and Jenny celebrate after the 2011 National 1/2 Marathon

So why do I run?

• Potato chips - seriously, they are delicious and I love them. When I run, I can eat them and not feel guilty.
• it started so that I would have something in common with my mom, who became a runner in 2001 and was living in Germany when I started running
• to have something fun to do with my friends. I have always trained with a running buddy. Erin, until she moved to Belgium, then I was running occasionally with Manda, then just with Jenny; last summer her husband, Josh, joined us; this spring our friend Reid has started coming; and this week my friend Michelle will be joining us for the first time!
• I run because I love how it feels to be a runner. It does great things for my mood, my body, my mind, my soul, and my self esteem. 
• it lets me compete with myself (though sometimes I try to compete with the boys!) and see success through hard work and dedication

I always say that running is to your late 20's/early 30's as binge drinking is to college.

• it's the cool thing to do
• you can do it alone, but people might think you are crazy or have a problem
• you plan your life around it
• its fun one on one
• its fun with a lot of friends
• you get really giddy and silly when you do it
• it leads to deep conversations
• you can't beat the high
• you plan when to hydrate
• but the best part is that you don't get hungover from it!

Think you might want to start running? It's easy - go get Jeff Galloway's 5k/10k training plan book, go to a running store and have a shoe evaluation, make a friend do it with you, and hit the road! If you ever have any running questions, feel free to email me! And thank you Colleen, for letting me share why I'm a runner!



Outer Banks 1/2 Marathon, November 2010


me and my roommate ran the Flying Pirate 1/2 Marathon in March of 2011


Thanks Liz for writing this. If you like this, then refer to why others run. Why do you run? Want to write a similar feature here, just let me know.