A chilly morning for a run...

...my lungs stung.
...my inner ears pounded.
...I nearly coughed up a lung.

But I did it.

And it was totally phlegm-a-licious. (A whole heckuvalotta hackin' goin' on...fun times!)

It wasn't anything crazy....just a nice and easy 3.8(ish) miler through my parent's neighborhood...which is amazingly hilly for Kansas. I ended up being a wuss and walking up the majority of the hills, but whatever. I'm looking forward to being back out on the nice, flat, soft, cinder running path in Chicago. Cause well...we've got a marathon in less than four months...this should be interesting...

But nevertheless...

Welcome back, Barb...welcome back.

Peace, yo.
- B

PS...anyone in Chicago belong to any of the city YMCA's? Let me know! I have some questions...

Go ahead...be jealous...

Cause this lil' Jayhawk is on her way to go get an hour long massage... THANK YOU SANTA! Later this afternoon...an easy 2-3 miler. Assuming I haven't completely turned to mush!

It's official.

We have officially signed up for the Country Music Marathon. Just now. With a nice lil $15 off coupon code.

It is SO.ON.

Goal time? 5 to the mo'fin' 30.

Bring it. Nashville...yer goin' down!

Oh Christmas...how do I love thee?!

It is officially the most wonderful time of the year!! This weekend I was in "holiday baking hell" where I made about 6 dozen sugar cookies, 70-something oreo balls, 3.5 dozen caramel truffles, 3 dozen peanut butter chocolate kiss cookies, and around 40-something white christmas white chocolate cranberry oatmeal chunk cookies. Just ask mouse. I kept sending her pics of the sugary goodness on her phone. Why do I call it holiday baking hell? Well...as much as I do love to bake (and I'm quite good at it), I managed to stab myself in the thumb with a tooth pick (ouch) and have no less than three meltdowns during the 3 days it took me to do all of the above. But it was worth it.

I'd also like to add, that our dear, sweet, Leah makes one mean ass sugar cookie. I'm drooling over here just thinking about it...mmmm.....

We're heading to my folks soon, so the only running we've been doing is running around like crazy people to try and get our poop in a group to get ready for the insanity. I can't stinkin' wait! However, I am bringing running stuff with me...so I'm getting a few runs in while we're gone. Even if they're on the dread mill. Blah! Hopefully I can avoid the hills of Cedar Creek.

And apparently, I've been tagged. So here we go!!

Egg nog or hot chocolate? Egg nog is nasty. I just don't get it. Even with Brandy in it, it's grosser than gross. I'm a fan of hot chocolate...with a bit of mint syrup for that extra holiday zest!
Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Santa has his very own special wrapping paper. How else were we supposed to know which gifts were from the big guy and which were from our folks?!
Colored lights on tree/house or white? White. Only white. It's beautiful. It's classic. And it's one of my Christmas pet peeves. Perhaps colored lights will one day make an appearance in our home when we have multiple trees. Yes, you read that right. I want multiple christmas trees in our home.
Do you hang mistletoe? Nah. But I've always thought I'd be fun to hang mistletoe above the bed. And no, I'm not on the naughty list.
When do you put your decorations up? This is where the OOSG and I disagree. I'm sure it comes as a shock, but if I had my way it'd be up Nov. 1st. If he had his way, it wouldn't be until after Turkey Day/early December. Instead we compromise and it goes up the weekend before Thanksgiving.
What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? My mom's Christmas morning breakfast casserole. Oh gawd...I GET TO EAT THAT IN A FEW DAYS!!!!!!!!!! Woohoo!!! Soooooo good. Just thinking about it makes my tummy grumble with delight!
Favorite holiday memory as a child? That is reserved for me and my mom...and the cabin we used to have.
When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I'm the Queen of Jing-A-Ling...what are you talking about "the truth" ??
How do you decorate your Christmas tree? With lots of ornaments and lights and strings of red beads. And as you might have guessed, we have an obscene amount of KU and Jayhawk ornaments. Eventually we'll have a tree that is solely KU. My mum on the other hand...has a trillion trees...her grandkids tree (with ornament photos of all the grandkids), her angel tree (only angel ornaments), the golf tree (take a guess on that one), the travel tree (with ornaments from all the places they've visited) and of course, the traditional tree with all of the ornaments I remember from my childhood. And people wonder where I get it from!!! I can only aspire to be so much.
Snow! Love it or dread it? I love the snow. Edit...I love the snow when I can stay indoors and curl up with hot chocolate, my hubby and a good movie while watching all the flake tumble toward the earth. I dread it about 3-4 days after the snow has fallen. It's black and nasty and I'm notorious for sliding on the ice underneath.
Can you ice skate? Hmm...yes. Yes I can. I have skillz to rival Michelle Kwan....when I'm not grazing the ice with my ass.
Do you remember your favorite gift? I've received a lot of really great, awesome gifts at Christmas in the past. I'm not sure I can pick just one. There's the wooden shoes ornament that my grandma just gave me (it was a gift carved for my late grandfather), and then there's my record player, and the MCIS vinyl that I had been coveting for YEARS (Mike, unbeknownst to him, snagged one of the original 5,000 press)...anything with thought behind it, really. There are far too many to count.
What's the most important thing about the holidays for you? Giving. In every sense of the word. I love giving gifts. I love making people smile. I love putting thought into finding just the right thing. I love spending weeks, even months hunting for the perfect gift to give. I love adopting families and children during the holidays. I love giving!!
What is your favorite holiday tradition? While I'm looking forward to all of the new holiday traditions that Mike and I will start in the upcoming years...I think my favorite tradition that my mum started ages ago was the holiday pajamas! Each year, we all get matching holiday jammies to wear. Oooh...and the opening gifts one at a time thing really rocks, too.
Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? Giving. Didn't we establish this already?
What is your favorite Christmas song? A Mad Russian's Christmas by Trans-Siberian Orchestra. You'd recognize it if you heard it. It rocks. Oooh...and I also really like Carol of the Bells...and the Nutcracker Suite. And Christmastime by Smashing Pumpkins. And Mariah Carey's All I Want For Christmas. And RUN DMC's Christmas in Hollis. Any anything on the "A Very Special Christmas" series. Goooood stuff.
Candy canes? Me gusta mucho.
Favorite Christmas movie? Oooooh...tough one. I really love the standard oldies in claymation and stop animation. My mom would tape Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman during the holidays and I'd be watching it in the thick of summer. And of course, A Charlie Brown Christmas. And The Grinch. In terms of more modern flicks...Elf makes me giggle like no other hoilday movie has before.
What do you leave for Santa? A toasty fire in the fireplace so he burns his rump on the way down. Just kidding! One year we didn't have any cookies (blasphemous, I know) so we left him fig newtons and water with a note about weight loss. But usually cookies and milk...with some carrots for the reindeer.

Five days and counting people...FIVE DAYS. Are you done with your holiday shopping?!?

It's so good, it brings a tear to my eye...

Those of you who know me, know not to call me anytime before...ohhhh...11am most days. I'm not really a morning person (unless it's a Saturday morning long run) and typically I won't answer my phone.

This morning was no exception. Although I did answer my phone, I just hung up accidentally (in my defense I thought it was the alarm clock on my cell phone). So my phone rings 2-3 times and in a daze I open and shut it, thus hanging up on the person...oops.

Finally, at 7:23 am, I realize what I've done...but since I didn't recognize the number...no big deal. Right?

They call back...

...and its...

THE PLUMBER!!!!!

Joyous fanfare ensues. It was a beautiful moment. Our kitchen, complete with its gorgeous new Corian countertops, is going to be functional in a matter of hours. They're fixing the plumbing to match the new sink...they're turning the water back on...and I will be doing my happy dance as I bake with my bad self this weekend (I know, I can't COOK...but I can BAKE with the best of 'em).

Alright. Time to stop procrastinating at work.

Peace, yo! - B

PS...poor Phog is sick. Send some belly rubs his way...poor pooch can't keep anything down. Hopefully tomorrow's trip to the vet will be successful.

PS#2...finally work drama is slowing down so consistent running can one again begin...those of you who follow the news and caught the bit about that big giant retailer...yeeeeeeeeeeeeah...my team has been doing damage control with that.

Dear World...

The OOSG and I have not fallen off the face of the earth. Nor are we ignoring you. We are simply caught up with the hustle and bustle of the holidays. There was a good 72 hours where this magnificent duo was hovering over the toilet for some tandem projectile vomiting induced from some bad food.

It wasn't pretty.

And then came Barb's work week from hell (those of you in the ad world can have a pretty good guess of what my agency was dealing with last week)...paired with craziness at the clinic for Mike. And then a trip to Kansas for a wedding.

Late last night we returned home from Kansas with a voicemail from Josh...he was a bit nervous since it's been a while since we posted and he wanted to make sure we hadn't fallen in Lake Michigan or joined Dean in is quest across the country. Thanks for the check up, buddy. We would've called back, but it was a bit late and well...we were tired.

I assure you, we're still alive. And still...uh...not really running. I know, I know...wipe that disapproving look from off of your face. We've got big plans this week. Big plans. Just you wait and see...

Oh, and our DVDs from the marathon came in. I thought GoActionVideo was filming at 7 or 8 different points, but really they just got us at the start line, half way, 35k and then the big finish. Oh well. They're still amusing.

It's my day off...so I'm gunna go do what I do best...relax. And hopefully finish Marley & Me (the book is so damn good!).

Peace, yo.

The Schlep to Work...8:45am...

When I looked out the window this morning, it didn't appear like much happened over night. It was pretty much the same sight that I was left with at 12:30. Except now, snow was actually coming down...from the sky, from the tops of buildings, it was blowing all over the place...nothing too dramatic...yet.

Here are some photos from this morning's walk into work (yes campers, I walk to work)...enjoy!

Watch that pretty little head of yours! Did you know that "falling ice" injuries are quite common here? Chunks of ice will fall off the side of a building and whack folks in the head. Ouch. I'm a bit surprised that they already have these out, given the fact there's not too much ice accumulation going on. At least this strip had the courtesy to salt their sidewalks.

The corner of Michigan Ave and one of the Lake Streets. You really can't tell from my camera phone, but the snow is-a-blowin'!


Contrary to popular belief in the city, we do have snow plows! It just takes them a while to get around. We have 90,000+ miles worth of streets in Chicago and less than 300 plows. Do the math, campers.

More to come later...assuming that I'm not setting up camp in an igloo around lunch. They're still predicting upwards of 8 inches (translation...some icy sleet and about 3-4 inches of slush).

It's starting...

Let's see how this crap progresses over the next 72 hours...as long as Saturday's basketball game doesn't get cancelled, all is well in the Jayhawk household. KU is playing DePaul and we'll be there come hell or high water (...or blizzard-esque conditions).

View from our window...12:30am.

Stay tuned for an update tomorrow morning...