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By kilax, November 1, 2018 6:23 am

• I finished Vox! I became less anxious after the main character’s wrist counter (that tracks her speech and zaps her if she says over 100 words for the day) came off so she could work on an anti-Wernicke’s aphasia serum for the president’s brother. (BUT SPOILER, the government’s intentions are more sinister!) The entire book was suspenseful and made me feel on edge while reading it. But I obviously liked it because I finished it!

• Now I’m reading Little Fires Everywhere, which Amy recommended to me. It’s appropriate I’m starting it today, as I’m traveling to Cleveland, where the book is set!
• This morning was my first time using TSA Pre✓. It went much quicker than regular security, even though they still had me take my jacket and shoes off. It was so nice to leave my laptop in my bag though. <— welcome to the 2010s, Kim, I know. Ha.
• Today is an exciting day – it’s the day I start listening to Christmas music! Woo hoo! (But… I didn’t have time to load it on my phone this morning, so that will wait until tomorrow, sad face.)
• Speaking of Christmas, I bought a few gifts last week!
• Do people still share business cards at meetings? I always have to make sure I have some when I travel for work, or meet someone new. I haven’t received new business cards at work in YEARS. I don’t really use them – I use digital contacts. (Click through to take a poll)

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• My sleep has been such SH!T lately. Gawd. I’ve realized this month that waking up at 3:50 am on Fridays is killing me when I have a weekend full of plans. And about half of each week, the cats wake me up in the middle of the night, or, yay, even better, thirty minutes before my alarm. I’m looking forward to the extra hour gained on Sunday. I won’t get to sleep in (see: cats) but I can take a nap!

Who, us?! We NEVER try to climb the back of the headboard during the night. NEVER.

• I’m having my blog redesigned and love the look so far. I can’t wait to show you guys. Thanks to Shelley for recommending the designer!
• I have a few more “randoms” to share, but maybe I can stretch those in to a full post, ha!

Link to Random Thoughts Thursday 201

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By kilax, September 18, 2018 6:12 pm

Gosh, music videos sure do make me go

But here is what I am listening to on repeat:

and

I hope Demi Lovato is okay after her August overdose. I felt sad when I heard about that (as opposed to not caring, as with most celebrities).

Is it still too early in the day to celebrate that I haven’t burned the house down as I almost did the last two Tuesdays?! Sigh. I’m not sure if the cabinet over the toaster oven is ever going to NOT have a slight smoke smell… guess I need to remodel the kitchen! Ha!

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By kilax, August 10, 2018 7:11 am

I have a whole list of more substantial blog posts ideas but it’s just that – a list of ideas! So you get fluff for your Friday (um, not that this blog is EVER more than that!)

I received some iTunes giftcards for my birthday so you know what that means – it’s back to buying songs*, baby!

I have a huge list of songs I want to buy, but the song I’m listening to on repeat is one that wasn’t even on my list – I saw it on the iTunes Top Songs List <— so basic

Imagine Dragons, “Natural” <— even more basic but whatever – I like popular music!!!

*Yes, yes, I know there are many streaming applications I can use “for free,” including Amazon Music, which I have, but do not use. I buy my music. And deal with the POS that is iTunes.

And more fluff – cat pics! I know that’s why you’re really here!

Khali and Starbuck

Khali and Apollo

Starbuck

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By kilax, June 13, 2018 6:44 am

It’s race week! My race week prep includes:

• running / working out less (same intensity, less volume)
• getting a massage
• carb loading (ha)
• staying hydrated
• packing
• prepping food to bring
• finalizing my playlist
• getting enough rest… (not doing so well there)
• continuing race course visualization and repeating my mantras

My race week prep does NOT include:

• obsessively checking the weather

A few people have kindly asked me what race weather will be like. I don’t know. I haven’t been checking. I will check when I pack tomorrow. There’s nothing useful the weather is going to tell me now, since the forecasts change ALL. THE. TIME. I don’t need to buy special items for certain kinds of weather (I have everything), so I don’t need to check in advance to prep. I just need to pack some options.

I’ve seen the weather really eff up people’s mental game lately – spending time fretting about it days before the race, and letting negative thoughts about it bring them down on race day. It’s smart to be safe, in bad weather. It’s smart to go easier at a race, if it’s not your ideal weather. And it’s smart to be prepared!

But dwelling on it, and obsessively checking it is a total mind f*ck. Don’t do that! Try not to freak out! Weather just IS. Everyone is racing in the same conditions. It stinks that we sometimes put LOTS of time and work in for an event that ends up having crap weather, but that’s the risk you take (unfortunately)!

I allow myself one “this sucks!” thought on race day, then adjust, and fill my thoughts with positive weather mantras. And I adjust my goals if need be. I’ve even asked people I am with to stop venting about the weather (to me). That’s all really cheesy, but it keeps me in a positive mindset as possible, which I need when I am racing.

I listened to a podcast interview recently where Deena Kastor was giving some tips and talking about her new book (I want to read it so badly!) and she said “the mind steers the ship.” So if you’re in a negative mindset about the weather (or whatever, really) at a race, it’s going to affect your body! It just is!

So rah rah rah! Don’t worry, be happy!

Seriously though. Don’t stalk the weather forecast. It’s usually not even accurate the morning of!

Oh! And I have to ask, does anyone else make the same mistake as me when you DO check the weather – where you assume the low is the morning temperature and the high is midday or afternoon? I do that EVERY time I look for some reason, even though that is NOT what the predicted lows and highs mean! The low can be that night and the high can be in the morning. Duh, Kim.

And also: yes, please b*tch away about the weather after your race!

Comments (19)

By kilax, June 7, 2018 4:35 am

• I downloaded Bad Wolves’ cover of “Zombie” yesterday and ended up down a rabbit hole of googling about the Cranberries. I like the homage of their music video to the original.
• Does anyone else who uses iTunes to make playlists want to vent with me about how annoying it is, and how it doesn’t sync half the time (and overwrites your computer with old playlists from your phone)? Or am I the only one still using iTunes?!
• This article (pdf here) about the movie The Truman Show is interesting. It’s the twenty year anniversary of the show, and they’re reflecting on how when they made the show it blew their mind that people would be interested in watching what a total stranger is up to all day… fast forward twenty years, and that is a lot of the entertainment business, with reality shows and social media!
• There’s not enough pictures to break up all this text, so here’s one Steven sent me when he was picking up meds for Data at the vet’s office yesterday.

• I finished reading Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance, and didn’t care for it. It’s well written/researched, and has a plethora of studies referenced, but didn’t do it for me. There was one MAJOR happy outcome of reading it though! The book mentions the swirl and spit sports drink study that Runner’s World has been touting for years, usually as advice to lose weight (grrrr, so messed up). The study was done to find out why we get benefits immediately from a carbohydrate sports drinks, before they enter the bloodstream – not to come up with silly ways to cut on calories. It’s because as soon as you have the drink in your mouth, parts of your brain react to it, and immediately act as if you’d taken in the carbohydrates, whether you ingest it or not. This is the data Runner’s World was using to give their stupid advice, but I hadn’t seen it in this unadulterated form.  I’m glad the study was done for legitimate scientific reasons, and it’s just Runner’s World spinning it strangely.
• I started reading Bart Yasso’s Run Forever… but when I got it from the library I could tell I wouldn’t care for it. It’s an advice book, on how to, you guessed it, RUN FOREVER! There was nothing new in there for me. I mostly skimmed it, and returned it. I’m not really in to advice books right now.
• So now I am reading the hard copy of Artemis (I had the digital version on my phone but prefer hard copy). Steven finished the audio copy yesterday. I am behind in Book Club for Two!
• The last time I shared this chart, it had a slight incline at the end. Ideally, it would still be gently sloping down, but if I can maintain my weight during this very busy month, I will be glad!

• We had our yard and house sprayed for bugs last Saturday, and the spray left the windows SUPER streaky. Ick! Luckily, I have tons of anxious taper energy and could spend a few hours cleaning them yesterday after work. Ha! I’m actually glad I’m so busy this weekend and the weekdays leading to the marathon so I don’t think as much about how little I am running.

Link to Random Thoughts Thursday 181

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By kilax, May 25, 2018 4:19 am

When I heard Ariana Grande’s new single “No Tears Left to Cry” for the first time I knew I’d be downloading it.

What I didn’t know is that I would be listening to it on repeat so much! It got me ready for my tempo run Tuesday, when I listened to it (on repeat) during my two warm-up miles. It got me pumped up to have a fast finish during my Thursday long run, when I finished listening to podcasts after mile fifteen and decided to switch over to music, and played it three times (I had to stop myself from playing it more, ha).

Yay for new music!

Let me know if there’s anything you’re loving now that I need to check out.

My power song has been AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” for a looooooong time. I doubt it will ever retire. “Thunderstruck” always has the same effect on me – it gives me energy when I feel like I have no “push” left.

Example: I was doing my tempo run Tuesday, and had just gone up at hill at mile 8.5 and felt SPENT and wasn’t sure if I could do 10 tempo miles. But then “Thunderstruck” came on at the beginning of the final mile and I immediately got that surge to finish strong! I played it on repeat for that mile.

I listen to it at the beginning of 5Ks to get revved up, and listened to it at the beginning of my last half marathon.

It amazes me a song can have this effect! I told my dad about what happened during my tempo (he said “would have been just wrong to stop then!” <— yep!), and told him I may have to play “Thunderstruck” every ten songs during my marathon playlist. Ha. But seriously.

So, get yourself a power song, if you don’t already have one! It can be your secret weapon. And you don’t have to run with music to use it (although, truth – that does help). You can listen to it before you work out, or listen to it in your head, when you need it.

Comments (14)

By kilax, March 23, 2018 3:44 am

I found MC Fioti’s “Bum Bum Tam Tam” watching a dance video on Instagram. I find quite a bit of my music that way – I like the music (hip hop) dancers use!

And “Bum Bum Tam Tam” was one I was instantly listening to on repeat, day after day..

Let me know what you think, and what you’re listening to right now!

VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION – I am getting a manicure on Sunday, and whatever color I get will be the one I have on when I do my 5K on April 7th.

So… should I stick with this blue, since it matches my singlet so well?!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this blue.

Or… should I get something else from the gorgeous OPI Lisbon Collection?! I like all of these colors (and have worn #4 before!):

Vote on what color I should get (if you want)! I will let you know what I end up with on Monday!

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By kilax, February 23, 2018 8:37 am

I’m running a 5K on Sunday to gauge my fitness level, not to set a personal record, but I’m still going to do my 5K Prep List:

1. Get a massage (this afternoon!)

2. Make a race playlist (will do that tomorrow; it will definitely feature “Get It”)

3. Take a nap the day before the race (tomorrow)

4. Don’t run the day before the race (err… this one may be hard… no promises…)

5. Paint my nails (already done last week!)

That’s it! Nice simple list! I’ll check the weather the morning of the race, and pick out my outfit then. It doesn’t start until 11:00 am, so I’ll have time.

Not on the list, because it’s impossible: quell 5K racing nerves. I feel like 5Ks are the hardest distance to race, and it’s the ONLY distance I get nervous energy about!!! AHH!!!!!

Comments (2)

By kilax, February 10, 2018 5:28 am

Do you ever hear an artist’s voice and know you’re going to like almost every song they perform? That’s how I was with Christina Aguilera back in the day! I could listen to her voice for hours while I was running. And I imagine that is how some people currently are with Ed Sheeran? (Although not me, ha!)

Bebe Rexha is that artist for me now. Although, funny thing, it took me a while to realize that!

A few years ago, another blogger posted her song “I’m Gonna Show You Crazy” (I wish I could remember who it was to give them credit!). I immediately loved Rexha’s voice and remembered her name and started noticing her in more songs after that. And noticing that many of those songs became “favorites” of mine.

What I didn’t make the connection on was that she was already singing smaller parts in some songs I loved, and her voice was what made me love the songs. I didn’t figure that out until I was putting this post together, and decided to listen to a lot of the songs she’s been featured on, and realized I liked her before I “thought” I did when I first heard “I’m Gonna Show You Crazy.”

Ha, I am not trying to be hipster on you! Just sharing that I’ve liked her before I even knew it.

Anyway, here are my current favorite five songs of hers (you may have to click through from your reader to see them), and some honorable mentions. Let me know your favorite, or if you’re already a fan (or if you don’t care for her music)!

Honorable mentions:

• “Me, Myself, and I“
• “The Way I Are“
• “Hey Mama“
• “Him & I“

Comments (8)

By kilax, January 26, 2018 8:38 am

I always have at least one new-to-me FAVORITE song that I am listening to on repeat. And I’d like to share those! <— hence the optimistic “1” in the title indicating this may be a repeating series.

Right now, it’s Erin Bowman’s “Good Time Good Life,”

and Rita Ora’s “Anywhere.”

It’s funny I am sharing music videos, because hearing new music for the first by seeing its video usually makes me not care for it (at first). It gives it a different context than had I just heard it. I usually search for new music by listening to it only, on iTunes. Or I watch a dance clip on instagram or Facebook, and look up the song from the clip (that is how I found “Good Time Good Life” – on the Fitness Marshall’s page).

But blogs are visual and I don’t want to just list titles and make you have to look them up, ha!

So give them a listen! And maybe close your eyes, if you have the same issue as me, ha. (Although the first one is just a lyrics video!)

And let me know what YOU are listening to on repeat!