Bay to Breakers 2014

Narwhal Narwhal Swimming Through the Ocean

This past Sunday was Bay to Breakers. This event combines what have recently become two of my favorite pastimes: running and costume making!

The costume: My friends decided on a "winter" theme this year. In our ranks we had a polar bear, a reindeer, and a couple of snowmen. I decided to be a narwhal, which is not particularly winter-y. It is, however, pretty awesome. I spray-painted a foam hard hat, glued on some googly eyes and a spiral tusk, and made flippers and a fluke out of felt. I was very happy with the results!

Apparently people love narwhals. My fellow narwhal and I got several shout-outs ("NARWHALS!!") and several strangers took photos of/with us. There were a few who mistook us for unicorns, but we promptly corrected them. Besides, what kind of sad unicorn is gray? 

The running: My friends and I unofficially participated (partied) in Bay to Breakers for the last two years, walking only part of the course. This year, with my new-found love for running, I was ready to race. Sadly, my legs did not feel the same way. I strained my calf during the Rock 'n' Roll SF race, and it still hasn't recovered (I finally went to see the doctor after 6 weeks of little improvement). 

It is such a downer to not be able to run. After several years of trying to "get in to running," I finally enjoy the activity. I should have seen it coming, though. I was so excited about running faster and farther. During training runs I would say to myself, "Why can't I run faster than this? Oh wait, I CAN run faster!" And look at me now. Sigh.

And so, I jogged the first 3 miles and walking the rest. I was OK with walking, though. Besides, it was really crowded, and it's difficult to run with a tusk sticking out of your head. Bay to Breakers is all about the experience, anyway.

My official finish time is 2:03:17. That's longer than the last two half-marathons I've run! I find this amusing. Despite not being able to run, I had a blast. I will definitely do this race next year--and hopefully run it. 

Bay to Breakers: May 18, 2014

Rock 'n' Roll San Francisco

Rock 'n' Roll San Francisco: April 6, 2014

This past Sunday was the Rock 'n' Roll San Francisco Half Marathon, my second race of the year. The weather was great, the people were happy, and the city was beautiful. I had a lot of fun. Even though I didn't set a new PR, I'm very happy with my results. Here's a recount of my day:

I got up at 3:30am so I could eat a pot of rice (mmm, carbs) and get ready for the race. B gave me a ride to the start line at the ocean end of Golden Gate Park. At 5:30am it was dark and cold, and I started to question why I had put myself in this position. Sunday mornings are meant for sleeping in and going out to brunch! However an hour later, when the sky began to lighten and the race began, I forgot all about my complaints. The weather turned out to be perfect: nice and cool, with Karl the Fog nowhere in sight. The Golden Gate Bridge was looking awful pretty. Three lanes of the bridge were closed to traffic so that we were able to run on the deck and get a spectacular sunrise view of that iconic engineering marvel. I tried to take a selfie while running under a tower, but it turned out to be a very unflattering blur of a picture.

The RNRSF course was a lot more challenging than the ORF course. Where the ORF half marathon was almost completely flat, the RNRSF course looked like this:

 

In the two weeks between the ORF and RNRSF, I ran up any hills that I could find. I even ran some stairs in hopes of getting my calves ready for some climbing. Come race day, I was still dreading the hills. But they actually weren't too bad! I'm saying this three days after the race now, but as I was huffing and puffing up those inclines, I'm sure I had some less cheerful thoughts on the terrain. I'm just glad that I made it through the entire race without cramps or injury. My final time was 1:52:07, 47 seconds over my ORF time. It would have been nice to set a PR, but considering all the hills and the short time between races, I mark this as a success. As a bonus, I got to snag a picture with the Nesquik bunny in front of City Hall!

That very afternoon, riding on my runner's high, I signed up for more races: Bay to Breakers 12k and The Town's Half Marathon. I think I have an addiction! Now here's how my year of running is looking:

• March 23  -  Oakland Running Festival Half Marathon  Finished in 1:51:25
• April 6  -  Rock 'n' Roll San Francisco Half Marathon  Finished in 1:52:07
• May 18  -  Bay to Breakers 12K
• June 1  -  Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Half Marathon
• August 16  -  The Town's Half Marathon, Oakland
• September 19-20  -  RAGNAR 200-Mile Relay, Napa Valley
• October 5  -  Rock 'n' Roll San Jose Half Marathon

I feel like I need to find races for July, November, and December so that I have a race every month. I'm pretty sure I'll end up registering for even more races. But for now, time to work on my speed and my B2B costume!

Staying Positive!

Today is a good day. I had to remind myself of that throughout a morning wrought with car troubles and phone tag.

Lake Merritt in the mornin'

But before all that began, I set out on my first run since Sunday. Lake Merritt was shimmering, sky was looking fine, legs were feeling nice. Unlike the ORF half marathon, the RnR SF half marathon has quite a bit of climbing. I have the elevation graph taped above my work monitor. Up, down, UP, down, down, up, down. In my attempt to prepare for San Francisco's rolling terrain, I ran up a long flight of stairs and small hill. They left me panting. It still felt good to stretch my legs, though. 

I took my sweet time showering and making breakfast before finally heading out to go to work. My car started up and sounded a bit rattly. Nevertheless, I pressed on, only to have my car die half a mile down the road.

My poor little Golf, stranded on MacArthur Blvd.

Having been hauled around in clunkers all through my childhood, I am no stranger to car malfunctions. Overheating, mysterious smells, running out of gas, flat tires, dead batteries, I've been through it all. This was a case of Sudden Car Death. Hazard lights, on. Stuck in a left-turn lane at a moderately busy intersection, I got out of my car and crossed to the sidewalk, AAA card in hand. But first things first--call home!

My dad is a fixer. The reason why we had so many old cars is because he'd take friends' old "broken" cars and get them running again. He claims to have taught himself how to fix cars out of necessity, but I think he secretly takes a lot of pride and joy in bringing cars back to life. Dad wasn't home, but Mom picked up. She left the house immediately to come meet me.

Next, I called AAA for a tow truck to get me outta there! Long story short, I was standing in front of Oakland High School on the phone for close to two hours before the truck showed up and hauled me back to the house. The friendly AAA representatives with their southern drawls (I wonder where their call center is...) were nothing but helpful; it just took a lot of back and forth to get a tow truck authorized to come get me. Mom complimented me on how calm and cheerful I remained through the whole ordeal. No sense in getting frustrated, I told her. Nevertheless, I needed a drink! It was still the morning, though, so instead the two of us went out for some pizza.

Can you see the resemblance?

Mom and I sat down at Slicer on Piedmont where we reminisced about my grandparents over mushroom pizza and strawberry lemonade. After our tasty meal, we walked over to Mountain View Cemetery to bring some irises to my Yun-Yun and Yeh-Yeh. Relaxing with my mom was a nice way to counter my stressful morning. If only I had the whole day off...! Alas, I had to go in to work. 

Not surprisingly, my abbreviated work day flew by. And now, it is time to go and meet some friends for All You Can Bowl!! By the way, I'm joining a bowling league. It is a dream come true!

Run Run Run!

This past Sunday, I ran the Oakland Running Festival half marathon. My goal was to complete the 13.1-mile race in under two hours. I succeeded with a finish time of 1:51:25! Average pace of 8:30 min/mi.

Race Day: The morning started out slightly overcast until the haze gave way to sunny skies. There were lots of cheering spectators, live bands, and motivational signs ("Your Asana Looks Great!") to help the miles go by. Some of my favorite parts were running through the flaming arch at the Crucible and high five-ing the DJ at the Raider Nation underpass party. I ran the event with a few friends, but I also bumped into some folks that I hadn't seen since high school or college! Throw in the post-race beers from 21st Amendment and all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ, and it was a perfect Sunday.

Come Monday morning, my legs were a little sore, but I could still walk (unlike when I ran the ORF half marathon in 2012 without enough training). I felt achy and accomplished, but also a little bummed out. I had spent the last three months training for the race, and now it was over. So what's the first thing I do when I get online? Search for another race, of course!

I decided on trying out a Rock 'n' Roll event. There are four RnR half marathons in California: San Francisco, San Diego, San Jose, and Los Angeles. If you complete 3 of 4, you get a special Cali-Combo medal. I spied the glittery gold bling at the ORF Expo, and it is a beaut! Naturally, I bought a 3-event "tour pass" and signed up for the RnR San Francisco half, coming up in 2 weeks!

I must say, this is very unlike me. I think I've caught some sort of bug. But I'm feeling pretty good.

Angry Bean Bag Chair

Just finished the birthday present for my nephew Tyler who turns 6 today. He loves Angry Birds. A few months ago, he came up to me with his iPhone (yes, he has an iPhone!) and showed me the official plush Angry Birds toys that are available for purchase. He pointed to the screen and told me, "You can make these for me. All the ones." He didn't ask if I would make them for him; he told me to make them. But he said it in the sweetest way, I couldn't say no.


It's been a while since I was given those little orders, but I haven't forgotten. Tyler probably had some small ball-sized birds in mind, but this guy here is about 3 feet in diameter. I think he'll have a fun time throwing this around the house.
Overall, this took about 6 hours to make. I didn't want to buy a pattern for the bag, so I drew up my own. It's basically a giant fleece beach ball with a zipper at the bottom, and inside is a second bag, made of muslin, to hold the bean bag pellets.
The only big frustration was when I spilled some of the bean bag pellets on my apartment floor. Imagine hundreds of statically charged foam balls rolling all over the ground. It was like I dropped a giant box of Kix--Kix that rolled away when you tried to scoop them up, then clung to your hands when you tried to deposit them into the bean bag!
Next up: two more bean bag chairs...one for my niece Olivia, and one for my nephew Barrett!

happy new year!

already february 2011. it's been over half a year since i posted on here! since my last post, i've spent a month on jury duty, camped in canada (road trip!), partied in miami, and splurged in spain. maybe more on those trips later--right now i want to talk about my newest focus: training for a half marathon!

i've never considered myself to be a runner, and i actually find running to be a bit boring...but my friend jon asked me out of the blue one day, and i thought "sure, why not?" of course, as with most of my crazy plans, i roped in the boyfriend. he's been a great motivator, and even did his best in getting me on my feet when i was sick. we found a half-marathon training schedule online by a man named hal higdon, here--it's a 12 week program. this past week i was really good and successfully completed week 1 of training. my legs are quite sore right now, but i have good momentum going! hopefully training will continue smoothly and injury-free (knock on wood)!

Mom's Back

Did I finish my mom's room in time for her return? Yes and no. I refinished her ceiling, primed it, and gave it two coats of flat Behr "Frost"; I gave the window sill and wall and door trimming a good sanding and two coats of semi-gloss "Frost"; and I rolled on THREE coats of flat enamel "California Poppy" on the walls. Even then, the color looks a bit uneven. I should have used a tinted primer, but I didn't think of it while I was at the store. Anyhow, I think another coat or two will even it out...

I was really hoping to get all the painting done and have everything placed neatly back in her room, but I just didn't have enough time. Turns out that was a good thing though because my dad volunteered my to put hardwood floors in her room too! The layout of this room is much simpler at least, so I don't think it will take nearly as long to complete as my room did.

Despite not completing everything I wanted to compete, I felt really accomplished, and I think my mom was quite surprised (or shocked?).

Also, the night before she came back, I stayed up til 3am cleaning downstairs. I thought it was looking real good. But Mom's response when asked about the cleanliness, "Wasn't it this clean when I left?" HAH! Oh well at least I tried. Now it's time to get back to MY room! Up next: base boards...and possibly some crown moulding?

Done painting

...almost. I did 2 coats on all my walls, including the hallway and closet interiors, but I still need to do the window sills and the door trim. I think it looks pretty darn good.

In the hall and closets, all the carpet, foam, and staples have been removed. Last night, Brian helped me move all my boxes into the hall, and now the foam and nails will be ripped up from the main part of the room. I'm so excited! Hopefully my floors will be installed by the end of the week. At this rate, I think it's quite a realistic goal.

Progress!

After living out of boxes for two months, I got worked up enough to work on my room again. Next up was priming my hall and closets, which I completed (with the help of my mom) earlier this week.

Today after work, I met up with Brian on the shore in Hercules to watch him fish. He just bought a new saltwater fishing rod and is determined to catch a fish. This being his second time out, he has yet to reel one in, but he came close; all he got was the fish's lower lip... :/

I was feeling rather lazy after sitting out in the sun for so long, just...sitting...watching Brian cast...again...and again...so to shake it off, I went home, grabbed my roller, and began painting! FINALLY! Some color on my walls! The back walls of my two closets are now Seafoam Pearl, a light greenish blue, and the walls of my hall are Sparrow, a light grey. So far it looks great, and tomorrow will be the second coat.

I'm pushing really hard to finish my room, at least all the painting, by the end of next week. You see, my Mom is leaving for China on Sunday, and she'll be gone for almost three weeks. I want to surprise her by not only finishing my room, but also giving her spare room a nice pick-me-up. I want to remove the popcorn ceiling, replace it with a smooth one like mine, then paint it all a nice shade of red. She said wistfully the other day that she has no room that's truly hers, so I want to make this room her space. Hopefully having a hard deadline will make me work faster!

I'm a loser

I lost my bet to Scott. Hopefully I'll finish by the end of April. Typical me, procrastinating...sigh. Currently: painting / priming walls.

Room Update

So...I thought I had a lot of time to finish my room. I have a bet with my friend Scott that I'll finish by the end of the month. As he says, "You always start stuff like this and never finish!" So I'm going to prove him wrong. Sure, I haven't done anything for the last 3 or 4 weeks, but not all is lost! Over the last couple of days, I covered up all my walls with plastic drop cloths and primed my entire ceiling (Brian helped a little with both). Tonight we'll be texturizing the ceiling, tomorrow we'll prime it, and Friday we'll paint it! Next week, the walls. There is still so much to do, and it's almost overwhelming. I'm glad I'm not doing it all by myself!

Maui Wowie

Brian and I just got back from a five-day trip to Maui. It was everything that a Hawaiian vacation is supposed to be--warm weather, cold drinks, cruisin', beaches, and lots of food. Our favorite dining experience was at a sushi bar called Koiso. They had really fresh fish and the best uni I've ever tasted. It may be because I like uni more every time I have it, but I think it's mostly because these little guys were freshly plucked off the nearby ocean floors. Second fave goes to the ahi poke from this little place called Eskimo Candy. What is poke? It's cubes of fresh ahi tuna in a soy sauce-based mixture. This place has a few varieties, including a Wasabi Poke with sesame seeds and green onions, and a Spicy Tuna Poke with tobiko and a creamy sauce. I am already in withdrawl!

Our five days there passed more slowly than I had expected, but I could easily have stayed longer. Some non-culinary highlights: learning how to surf, whale watching, and driving (or rather, being a passenger on) the road to Hana.

Game Plan

Brian and I are both engineers, but we'd both agree that he is more "engineer-y" than I. He likes to have a plan letting him know exactly what's happening now and what's happening next. Since I enlisted his help on this project, I decided to compile a plan for him, broken down in phases, subject to change.

Phase 1 - Throw out/donate unwanted items; organize
Phase 2 - Pack up everything into boxes
Phase 3 - Area B: move boxes to staging area 1; scrape off popcorn ceiling; refinish ceiling; prime and paint walls; install hardwood floors and molding; wash windows
Phase 4 - Area A: move boxes to staging area 2; scrape off popcorn ceiling; refinish ceiling; prime and paint walls; install hardwood floors and molding; wash windows
Phase 5 - Install finishes (lighting, switch plates)
Phase 6 - Purchase and assemble furniture: IKEA PAX closet system, EXPEDIT shelves, and more
Phase 7 - Load up closets and shelves
Phase 8 - Hang decorations

Floor plan of room:

Cleaning...Still

Last night my wonderful boyfriend Brian came over and got me to clean my room some more. I really needed his help because I had reached a point where I threw away the most obviously unnecessary items, but a large pile of old toys had settled in the middle of my room and refused to budge. I sifted through them again and finally mustered up the strength to say goodbye to my McDonald's toys, Sailor Moon cards, and other dusty friends. By the end of the night we had filled a box to the brim with trinkets. And I must say, I won't be missing any of it. I can't even remember half of what went in to that box!

The next step after throwing everything out: packing everything up so I can scrape off the popcorn ceiling...and it will happen sooner than I had thought. Brian suggested working on one part of the room at a time, so that means we just have to move everything to one side of the room (or "staging area") and then scrape and paint the other side. My original plan was to haul everything out and work on a completely empty room, but Brian's plan is much less daunting.

Here are some "before" pictures--I took them a couple weeks ago:





My room looks a lot better than this right now, really! I've gotten rid of several pieces of furniture (thank you Craigslist) and a lot of the clutter is gone. One more round of tossing stuff out and I think it will be on to the ceiling and walls!

That Magic Word...Remodel!

I am a pack rat. I keep toys I haven't touched in years, completed-and-glued-to-cardboard jigsaw puzzles, scraps of materials that "could be used make something later," stationary that I'm "saving" because it's too pretty, boxes of less-than-quarter-filled notebooks, and those cute little things that I've thrown into that all-encompassing category: knickknacks. My bedroom somehow stores nearly all my childhood possessions, one dorm room and two apartments' worth of mystery boxes, a whole lotta shoes, and enough crafting supplies to keep an entire kindergarten class occupied for days.

My room:
- Squeaky twin bed - headboard decorated with Lisa Frank and "Sandra" stickers
- No curtains - just bedsheets I hung up when I threw out the circa-1975 green brocade curtains
- Half-empty toy chest that belonged to my brothers
- Corner desk that I haven't been able to reach in about a year (too many boxes in front of it!)
- Some sort of storage unit with drawers and shelves - the shelves hold bags and purses, the drawers are empty, and the top is covered in a mess of jewelry and accessories
- 4 bookshelves of varying height and color - none are completely filled or organized in any way
- 2 chests of drawers, one from my grandpa, one from IKEA
- 2 closets filled with some clothes but mostly dusty boxes of knickknacks and craft supplies; shaky painted metal sliding doors, also decorated with stickers
- Beige carpet
- Lavender walls with water lily paper border along the top
- Fluorescent lights on one end of the room, and cracked-glass and brass light fixtures on the other
- Popcorn ceiling with glitter - what were they thinking back then...

Give all of this a nice layer of clothes strewn about, and you have my room.

I've come to the point where I just want to throw everything away. But of course once I do, I get nostalgic for that little green pencil and put it back in the "keep" pile. I'm doing my best! So far I've filled about a dozen boxes with clothes and toys to donate.

Prelim plan for my *new* room:
- Hard wood floors
- A fresh coat of paint - color scheme still pending. Possibly: pale yellow, white, and light grey
- REMOVE popcorn ceiling, refinish, and paint
- New furniture
- A work station for sewing and gettin' crafty
- A cozy corner for reading and knitting
- Good shelves for my books
- Effective storage for my supplies
- Closet systems (like Elfa from the Container Store, or Pax from IKEA) - SUPER excited for this
- New light fixtures and curtains

I want to create an open airy space where I can relax, study, and be creative. Hopefully this remodel won't take too long!