Leaving tomorrow!

So it's been a few days since I wrote and I can't say I've exactly been busy, just really lazy!  But the cat has fallen asleep in my lap and instead of moving her, I'll write an update!

Let's see I last wrote on Tuesday, which means I have let almost an entire week slide by without any sort of writing.  Tuesday was a quiet day of Harry Potter and ab workouts.  It just never stopped raining, very frustrating for an outdoor kid like myself! 

Wednesday morning came quickly, but I got the call at 5:20 that said we weren't heading out on the water so I fell back asleep for a few more hours.  Since my dad was working all day I just hung out by myself and went for a soggy run in the rain.  Averaged about 6.5 miles again and conquered the hills which now aren't all that bad, my legs are finally feeling stronger!  Wednesday evening was very quiet and we didn't do much out of the ordinary, lots of Harry Potter!

On Thursday I ran my newest and most favorite run.  It was about 9 or 9.5 miles and took me along West Valley Road in Chimacum down to the five mile marker and then I came back up and through the woods of our neighbors and made it home about an hour and a half later.  It was great!  Nice to be out running in shorts and a sports bra and so few people on the road, and it's so green around here.  In the afternoon my dad and I headed to the neighbors lake to go fishing!  We didn't get started right off because my neighbor was chopping down trees and falling them into the lake.  But after awhile we took out the little boat and paddled around searching for hungry fish.  Unfortunately we were very unlucky and got one bite and saw one fish before we decided it was time to head home at which point on one of my final casts I caught mr. fishy!  The fish was about a foot long and big enough to keep, but I was more excited about going to town and getting pizza, so we let it go and then went home.  But it was very exciting to catch a fish!

We went to town and got pizza at our favorite spot Waterfront Pizza and then went to Elevated Ice Cream for dessert because that's tradition! 

Friday was a slow day in the morning, I made lamb pockets for a appetizer potluck for the evening then went running and then came home and got some stuff together and then we headed to Port Townsend for my fundraiser.  The ladies of Tuf as Nails rowing organized a very nice fundraiser for me.  About thirty people came and went throughout the evening and we raised $1800 for my trip south!  I'm so thankful to have such a great community and people who want to help and support me!  I can't express my gratitude enough!  So, thank you everyone a thousand times over!

Saturday we went to seattle to the Northwest Folklife Festival.  It's a great cultural music festival with super great food!  I met up with my old friend Cassie, who I never get to see anymore, and we caught up on our lives and went shopping at REI.  Then I headed back to the center and watched some more music and ate a little and then we went home around 10:30.  It was a very late night for me and I'm still recovering!  :)

Today is packing day, put one thing in and take two out.  I always have to give myself a goal and this year it's to take a significantly large amount less than I have in the past.  Which means one checked back and absolutely one carry on.  It's proving somewhat hard by I'm managing!  I'm headed to Chula Vista tomorrow morning early and so here's to a good start of the rest of my summer!  As my mother recently told me, "none of the pull hard, go fast stuff, it's time to fucking move!" or something very close to that!

Here's a photo for the day:

Since Saturday

Well Sunday was a quiet day. Had a wonderful breakfast and a short 5-6 mile run. Those hills though are killing me. I'll find a way to make them easier over time. The rest of the afternoon was spent lazily watching the clouds roll by and I started re-reading Harry Potter.

Monday morning was an early, early morning, with a wake up call at 5:30. I jumped into rowing clothes and headed to Port Townsend. I met up with the ladies of Tuf as Nails, one of the women's masters rowing groups here in town. Unfortunately the water was rough and the wind was building so we elected to grab a cup of coffee at the Undertown and talk about a fundraiser. These wonderful ladies will be putting on a nice fundraiser for me at the end of the week, which I'm so grateful for. They're so generous. After our chat, we headed back to our cars and ran into the other group of rowers who had decided to go out no matter the conditions. I found my way into stroke seat of a quad and we battled 2-3 foot waves for about an hour. It was crazy, and not entirely the most enjoyable row of my life, but I think we learned that south winds might pick up on Port Townsend bay! However, it was a nice day to be outside. I spent the rest of the day running errands and reading Harry Potter.
For dinner my mom and I made homemade orecchiette (little ears in Italian) pasta. They were spectacular. We put on some olive oil, lemon peel, sauteed garlic, ham, tomatoes and olives and so it was a warm pasta salad of sorts. I also added some wonderful olive oil that was given to me by a friend. It is infused with chili, cardamom, and other spices to give it a special taste, and you could definitely taste it in the pasta. Here's a link to the company that makes it: oilvinegar.com.
And today I got up and read Harry Potter for a little while, 500 pages in! And did 2 x35 min on the old erg. Which should have produced far more than 15000m but it didn't. I would love to know how much energy I was exerting to produce so few meters, but I know I haven't gotten that slow. :) Anyways, I'm debating on another bout of exercise before the day ends, but Harry Potter is also calling so it may be a walk later and a little at home weight lifting to do the trick!


Picture of the day: And so with that the song of the day needs to be: "With a little help from my friends" by the Beatles


Also I recommend the Ingrid Michaelson channel on Pandora which gives you a mixture of Regina Spektor, Coldplay, Lily Allen, Norah Jones, and many many more great artists to help you get through a long hour!

Bike rides, organizing, and mentally preparing.

So let's see, I believe I left off on Wednesday night after eating Cous-Cous chicken curry. To continue our story, I headed home on Thursday morning after getting rid of a few loose ends and cleaning up the last bits of the house. Packed my car full, front seat reserved for my fish, Gomez and Ringo, and began the 4 hour trek home. I had to stop at the outlet mall to find a new watch. Who knew they don't actually sell them there, ugh... Anyways, I jumped back in the car and drove non stop to reach my house at 1:50 pm, having left at 9:35 and taking that short detour through Woodburn, left me with yes a 4 hour drive. Almost record time, almost... :) In any case I was glad to be home with my cat, Autumn (pictured below), and of course my padres. After unloading the ungodly amount of boxes from my car, to join the already full bedroom, I enjoyed a short run/walk with my mom. My legs were still burning from lifting on Wednesday.Friday was a morning of burning a large burn pile and raking up little twigs around the outside, and watching the fire burn. So terribly thrilling... Then I went on a nearly 8 mile run, which is a bit harder around here as there are lots and lots of hills. Well lots and lots compared to Salem which has like maybe 1 on my run through Minto Brown Park. So, getting in 8 miles took me nearly two hours... OUCH! But it was great mental toughness training, because I was in pretty instense pain for the entire run, but had to keep going and make it home. Totally worth it. Plus my legs still hurt from lifting. oops! The rest of the day was left to relaxing.
We finished the day by watching Paper Moon. It is a movie from the 70's, but set in the 30's and done all in black and white. It is one of the best con-men movies I have ever seen, especially since the star actress is little Tatum O'Neal. She did an awesome job, it was a great, great movie! Totally check it out on Netflix if you like those kind of movies. It's based off of the book "Addie Pray".Today was a quiet morning. I managed to organize my room and gave myself the ultimatum of having to get rid of a large box of clothes. But it's a good thing to finally get rid of the prom dress I never will wear again, man that was kind of hideous. The my mom and I got a ride to Sequim, WA where we got on our bikes and rode 22 miles to downtown Port Angeles to meet my Dad, load up the bikes and head home. It was a great ride (shown in black, above), and I'm so thankful that I now can ride for hours and not really mind the hard work and feel like I could keep riding for a few more hours. After a snack of course. Plus it made me love my neon pink 90's trek bike even more! Tonight consisted of a BBQ chicken dinner and me starting to reread Harry Potter #7. But now it's time to go to bed. We'll see where my adventures lead me tomorrow, but I know for a fact that they will be starting with a nice traditional waffle breakfast. More on that tomorrow! Below are pictures from today!

Keeping in Shape

Three days since graduation, I'm finally sitting down to write a quick note while my coconut chicken curry with cous-cous is boiling away on the stove. Not sure if that is a well rounded meal, but I'm eating what little food I have left before head north tomorrow. The last three days have been days of lazy packing and errand running. And then working out as well.
Monday was a good day off, packed my parents car and said goodbye to them around 11:30 and then did some errand running and packed up my room.
Tuesday, I accidentally ran 10 miles. As a few people asked on facebook, how did you "accidentally" run 10 miles. Well in the midst of graduation and working out, I have misplaced my watch and I'm afraid it'll be gone forever. I think I'll have to stop and pick up a new on tomorrow on my way home. In any case, I just kept running on this great path that runs by the river and fields of Minto Brown. Then about two hours later or a bit less, I found my way back home and had to map my run online using Map My Run. And found out that I had run just about 10 miles. My legs were pretty jello-y after, but it felt really great to be outside. After several hours of packing, cleaning and more cleaning. I headed back to the gym to lift. I played it heavy on the arms and felt great about the workout. Then came home to another couple hours of lazy cleaning. Katie and I have termed our cleaning lazy cleaning because we are allowed to take breaks, a lot of breaks. :)Then today I got up and went for a short run and did good ab workout. Packed up a little and cleaned the kitchen and hallway. And then did recycling with Katie. We made enough money off bottles to get coffee! It was a great trip, except for the rain. Then I headed to the gym after some wonderful TV watching and stumbling. And then made curry.
This post has taken like an hour to write because I had to cook and eat and watch America's Funniest Home Videos. :) By the way the curry was super delicious, if you want the recipe, unfortunately I don't know it because I just threw things in the pan! Tonight I will pack the car and head off tomorrow as soon as I can!
Here's a thought for the day: Worst Drinks ever!

And a picture for the day: Chula Vista training center: 10 days away.

Have fun! ~Hilary

Graduation Day!

Since my last post I rowed my last hour of power on the river, yes it was tough, but fun. Said good bye to the WU boathouse and Susan and Todd (my coaches). Below is my route for rowing, I started on the right and went against the current. It's amazing how much things can change in four years, I'm glad I tried rowing and showed up to that meeting the first day. I had no idea that it would turn out the way it has. But that story is for a later date.
Yesterday we celebrated the graduation of my roommates and I by throwing a nice bbq with family and friends. It was fun to see everyone's families together and have us all in the same place for one last hurrah before we all go separate ways for awhile. Almost all of us have been friends and/or roommates for the last four years!
My brother and I also went on a gorgeous run yesterday around Minto Brown Park in Salem, it was wonderfully warm and we ran for probably 80 min! Tomorrow starts packing and cleaning so I can head home to Washington in a few days! But for now it's time to graduate and celebrate!

4 days til Graduation!

First post, new blog, new summer, new adventures...
Now that I'm no longer a member of Willamette University Rowing :( I have been rowing the single out on the river and dreaming of new lakes and rivers that this summer will bring! Also new boats and boathouses but that's beside the matter. After a great showing at WIRA and coming back with a gold and a silver, I was pretty darn happy to have been a member of such a fun team for the past four years!
Here's my favorite picture from WIRA! See the photo credit for more photos from the races! Can't wait to head back to California for better weather and fun, super competitive racing!
Graduation is in 4 days, today we went shopping for dresses to wear and ended up with awesome shoes as well, plus I picked up a pair of Nike Lunarlite's super cheap, not sure how I'll like them though but hopefully they'll be great! Mine are a little bit more green, but here they are!Today I had a great cardio workout and abs. Looking forward to rowing the single tomorrow and then doing weights in the afternoon! More fun stuff later...

Cheers ~ Hilary