Mid-Week Musings

Maybe I'll expound upon some of this later. Maybe I won't. In the meantime, here's what is rambling around in my noggin today.

I've been off of Facebook for two months. It feels hypocritical to work in social media and not participate in social media. So I'm going back on. But! A lot of you motherfuckers are getting hidden.

I also logged back on to MyFitnessPal today. I went off a month ago, breaking my insane 890 day streak. I'm still struggling with where calorie tracking fits into my life. Maybe it doesn't. I mean, I'm 39 years old. At what point can I trust that I know what to eat and how much to exercise? We'll see.

Last week, I heard the song "Birdhouse In Your Soul" by They Might Be Giants and LOST MY MIND. Why has it never occurred to buy my favorite album from the early nineties? You can buy everything online! So I bought it and it is the air that I breathe. I highly recommend you go immediately to iTunes or Amazon and buy your favorite album from high school.

I've been catching up on So You Think You Can Dance on Hulu. This show is so good!! This year, there's a street team and a stage team, and they're competing against each other! You guys, there's a Hebrew breaker, a tapper, a girl with a bum leg from a car wreck, and a #shero from Detroit called 'Standing O'. OMG. So good.

The weather this week has me yearning for fall. I read through all the September issues over the weekend and can't wait to start my fall style board on Pinterest. Also, crockpots, chili, pumpkin everything, running again -- I can't wait!

Whistling In The Dark Podcast

There's a podcast I've been listening to and I feel like you should know about it. It's called Whistling In The Dark. It's hosted by Shannon Fitzgerald, a television writer and producer (bio here). In this podcast, she celebrates women's successes, details the paths it took to get there, and is brazenly open about her experience with therapy. What's not to love?

The podcast is basically her interviewing her famous and semi-famous friends. But it's super interesting. The interview is never about fame, but about how they achieved their success. She's real into process, so she asks a lot of questions about how they structure their day, how they remain creative while running a business, how they started out and what their day-to-day challenges are. I love it!

I recently listened to the episode with Hillary Kerr and Katherine Power, the co-founders and CEO's of Who What Wear. I can't remember if she posed this question to Hillary or Katherine, but she asked how they structure their work day. Whichever one answered, said that she's most creative in the morning, so as she's waking up and drinking coffee, she basically reads the internet, which is where she gets a lot of her inspiration. Then she, you know, takes a shower and runs her company, all the while, her creative brain is marinating in everything she took in that morning. Later, in the afternoon, when everything is taken care of, she sits down to write, and all of that inspiration from the morning, her brain has digested and turned into ideas.

This speaks to me because I've been having trouble structuring my day now that I work from home. I'm also creative in the morning, but I tend to burn through all my energy before 10am and then I'm useless in the afternoon. So I've been using my mornings for inspiration and my afternoons for writing. It works!

Listen to this episode. They talk about all these other things, too, like how everyone told them they were crazy when they left their magazine jobs to start a website, that no one, especially women, were doing at the time. They also list their favorite beauty products, which, hello!

Another thing I appreciate about Shannon, the host, is how much she loves therapy. She even has two episodes with her therapist, and they are amazing!

Okay, the whole reason I wrote this post is to tell you about the episode where she interviews two of the writers from Friends. It's probably my favorite episode. It's a fascinating look into how television shows are written, or at least, how they used to be. And of course, they have all these hilarious, behind-the-scenes stories about celebrity guests, etc. As someone who works in two to three Friends references a day, this touched me on a spiritual level.

Side bar: After listening to this episode, I watched a documentary on Netflix called Showrunners, which is what television writers are called now. I highly recommend it.

If you're a podcast person, which aren't we all? Download some of these Whistling In The Dark episodes. I think you'll enjoy them. Like anything, she gets better as she goes along, so some of the early ones are long and a little unstructured, but I still like them. Here are my favs.

Episode 15: The CEO's of Who What Wear/Clique Media Empire
Episode 13: "Friends" 20th Anniversary Edition
Episode 11: Karen the Therapist
Episode 10: Ann Shoket
Episode 8: Mario Melchiot
Episode 6: Cynthia Rowley
Episode 4: Lesley Arfin
Episode 1: Dan Savage

Happy listening!

Weekend Wrap Up: Old Slickory Edition

We had an ice storm in Nashville last week. I couldn't drive on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, tried driving on Thursday - mistake, and went back to not driving on Friday. Our driveway kept re-freezing, as did the street in front of our house. By Saturday afternoon, I decided I was going to Target if I had to put on my wetsuit and walk there.

It finally melted enough on Saturday afternoon for me to drive. I made it to Target. And Marshall's. And Old Navy. I needed new pajama pants, a black pencil skirt and ankle-length black pants. Target had absolutely nothing in my size. So I bought this candle. It was $10 and smells like the fancy one from Anthropologie. I got the rug and two black shirts at Marshall's. I heart that rug so hard. They had a million of them. This one was $30, but they had a bunch for $15 and $20, FYI. I hate Old Navy, but I knew they'd have pajama pants (on sale for $9), and they had nice-ish black pants and an okay black pencil skirt. Done.

My #1 homegirl, Lana, is running a full marathon on Saturday. I haven't done a long run in 2 weeks, but Melanie and I really wanted to run Lana's last long training run with her. She needed to run 8 miles, so we met at Belle Meade Blvd and ran the last 6 miles with her. And shockingly, none of us fell! (Everything was still covered in ice, except it was black ice now.)

Good luck on Saturday, Lana! Show Arizona the HAM!!!

Later on Sunday, I got to watch this little guy blow out the candle on his first birthday cake. Happy first birthday, Charlie! Your mom throws a mean party! (Alexis, I hope there's less babies at the Christmas party though.)

My plan on Sunday night was to watch the Oscar Awards a la our digital antenna. Nope. ABC was blacked out for the night. No problem, it's streaming online. Nope, not actually streaming. Only streaming things you can't see on TV, like the "backstage cam", the "audience cam", and my personal favorite, the "thank you cam". I hate you, ABC.

Tee-Veeee!

Back earlier in the summer, we cancelled our cable & returned our DVR. You probably just gasped if you know me. But here's the thing, everything I watch is available elsewhere. You guys, you kind of don't need cable anymore. We already had a Ruku upstairs, so we bought another one for downstairs. The new Roku has a headphone jack on the remote, which is awesome if you have a mastering studio in your house.

So in light of the Emmy's last night, that I didn't watch because our antenna is in a box on our dining room table, here's a roundup of things I've been watching this summer sans cable.

CURRENTLY WATCHING

Netflix Instant:
Arrested Development, Season 4
Mind of a Chef, Season 2
Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season 3
The Wonder Years
Twin Peaks

Hulu:
Project Runway, Season 13
So You Think You Can Dance, Season 11

Vuze:
The Leftovers

FINISHED

Netflix Instant:
Arrested Development, Seasons 1-3
Mind of a Chef, Season 1
Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Seasons 1-2
Portlandia, Seasons 1-3
Orange is the New Black, Season 2
House of Cards, Season 2

Amazon Prime:
Veronica Mars, Seasons 1-3
Inside Amy Schumer, Season 1

Vuze:
Game of Thrones, Season 4

WANT TO WATCH

Netflix Instant:
Bojack Horseman
Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown
The Killing, Season 4
Derek, Season 2
New Girl
Top of the Lake
Breaking Bad

Amazon Prime:
Drunk History
Kroll Show
Eastbound & Down
Enlightened
Treme
Boardwalk Empire
The Wire
Orphan Black

Hulu:
Moone Boy, Season 1

I haven't figured out how to watch these yet (for free), but they're on my list:
Top Chef Duels
Fargo

P.S. The Comedy Central app is awesome! I'm watching The Daily Show & The Colbert Report on my iPad. And it looks like all the network shows I watch will be available on Hulu when they start back up in the fall.

Weekend Wrap Up: #thingsthatlooklikefaces Edition

Fact:  My favorite Instagram hashtag is #thingsthatlooklikefaces. As far as I can tell, the sous chef at Husk started it & I am obsessed. Lana & I had dinner at Korea House on Friday night & she told me she has the best "thing that looks like a face" in her utility closet. She said she'd send it to me when she got home. Ta-da!

Lana took one for the team & joined me for my long ride on Saturday morning. In the rain. We rode out to the Percy Priest dam & back. In the rain. I was supposed to ride for 2 1/2 hours & then run a 2-mile brick. We called it around 2 1/4 hours because it was POURING. Catch you next time, brick.

John & I were meeting our friend Jeff for dinner on Saturday night & I was feeling simultaneously skinny & self-destructive, so I decided to try on my old designer jeans from NYC, circa 2003. Those sons of bitches fit! And I don't mean fit over Spanx as long as I was standing up - no, I mean fit like I wore them to dinner & could comfortably sit & eat. Yeah, I did!

P.S. Apologies to anyone who saw my butt on Saturday night. 2003 jeans were LOW.

Bey?

I met Lana & Jaime early on Sunday morning for a run. IN THE RAIN. Man, this rain. In the middle of our run, we saw Ann Patchett walking her dog. I yelled, "Hi! I love your bookstore!" I spent the rest of the run wishing I had thought to thank her for bringing Donna Tartt (and David Sedaris, and Jen Lancaster) to Nashville.

John & I went to Thai Kitchen for lunch, DUH, & then went to McKay. My friend Delaney & I share a love of old, spiral-bound cookbooks. I found this gem on Sunday. It looked like it had never been opened. Look at those olives on the plate with the hot dog! And the thermos in the sandwich picture!

So much for not buying anymore books. Sorry one hundred other books I have waiting to be read. Inspired by my early morning Ann Patchett sighting, I remembered she listed some books I want to read in a recent blog post. The rules of McKay are:  don't look for the book, let the book find you. But I broke that rule & set out to find these Ann Patchett recs & I found them! Totally worth $8.

There's no picture of me watching tv on my computer, but I started watching Season One of Inside Amy Schumer this weekend & it's kind of the funniest thing in the world. Has anyone else watched this?

Weekend Wrap Up: Hoturger Edition

On Friday night, I finished watching Season One of Veronica Mars. When I started this, I wasn't sure I'd stick with it, but within seconds of finishing the first season, I had John add Prime to the Roku so I could immediately start Season Two. I am officially hooked. Does that make me a marshmallow? I don't know what that means.

I had to run 6 miles on Saturday, so I met Melanie & Jaime at Percy Warner & we ran the 5.8 plus a mile on the Boulevard. While we were running, an owl flew across the trail & landed on a branch right in front of us. I have never A) seen an owl fly, B) been that close to an owl. Owls are kind of terrifying. Turns out, I was right to be so scared of my sorority initiation.

Women be shopping. Saturday was the Country Music Marathon, which I didn't run because, no. Due to the road closures, I couldn't get to the Downtown Y for yoga & weights.  So, duh, I went to the mall. I went into the new Lush store. I thought I didn't like Lush, but I was wrong. I just never had the right scent. I think that store is my new favorite thing. I spent way too much time in there. I wanted everything. Also, the sales associates are the teeniest bit pesky, but super helpful & really cool. When I left, one of them said, "See you next time, ladybird!" Pro tip: the secret to my retail heart is to give me a cute nickname.

Linda, eating bees & rocking a hot pink bandana, LIKE A BOSS.

Saturday was another gorgeous day, so I took my Kindle back out to the deck in my continued, determined attempt to finish 1Q84, which I will finish. John woke up & said our friends Mike & Amanda invited us over for a hot dog cook-out, so I decided to make Smitten Kitchen's salted brown butter crispy treats, which I almost, almost, ruined because I didn't read the directions & almost added the entire box of cereal. You're only supposed to use half the box. I was like, 'why is this so hard to stir?' It's amazing that I continue to bake.

Mike & Amanda have one of those green egg things, so anytime they have an excess of meat, they kindly call my carnivore husband & invite us over. The menu Saturday was hot dogs & chicken sausage. I was confused when they brought the grilled meat in alongside a tray of hamburger buns. "Are there hamburgers?", I asked. Nope. The hot dogs go in the hamburger buns, it's called hoturger. Mike coated the buns in mayonnaise & put them on the grill & then we put the hot dogs & chicken sausage in the bun. OMG. Hoturger! Y'all, it was so good.

Sunday was my first Trace ride of the season. Riding a bike on Natchez Trace is no joke. Even though I spent the better part of last summer riding out there, I had a hell of time on Sunday. I couldn't climb, I couldn't clip-out, there were teenage turkerys everywhere. I left feeling more than a little defeated. Neither Julie nor Lana could go for coffee, so I begrudgingly went on to my next work-out, a 60 minute pool swim. I was distracted & my legs were shot, so I swam 30 minutes & got out.

I was tired & complain-y, so John took me to lunch at Thai Kitchen & then let me do my nails all afternoon while he ran our errands.

Hoturger!

Spring TV

{Source}

Following up on my last tv post, I'm watching so much tv right now.  Between riding my trainer in the living room & hating all of the books, I'm plowing through some television.

Here are the shows I'm watching:

The Americans
This show is so good.  I don't think enough people watch it & you are all missing out.  The second season just started on FX, so it's not too late to set your DVR's.  I will say, the teenage daughter is starting to get on my nerves, similar to how annoyed we all got with Dana on Homeland.  Just stay in the house, Paige!

Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Oh, Buffy.  How did I make it through the nineties without watching you?  I just finished the first season.  It's a fun thing to watch while I ride my trainer.  There are so many subtle nineties things in the background that I keep catching, like a scene in Buffy's bedroom where she's putting on lotion before bed & it's the old-school Victoria's Secret lotion that we all wore in college/high school.  And then the scene where Zander says that he knows Willow isn't at home online because he called & the line wasn't busy.  Ha!  And Angel.  Sweet, sweet Angel.

Hannibal
God, this show is so good!  I'm continuously surprised at how graphic it is for network television.  There's a lot of eating of body parts.  I go back & forth on who I like more, Hannibal or Will, or Winston, the runaway dog, WHO!, by the way, is on Twitter because, of course he is.  Bless it.  So good!

Scandal
Do I even need to talk about this show?  You either watch it or you don't, & I pity you if you don't.  It's hilariously inaccurate, especially compared to other DC-based dramas like West Wing or K Street, but it's so, so deliciously good.  My favorite thing about watching this show is how many times a day I find myself thinking, 'What would Olivia Pope do?' & then reminding myself that she is a fictional character.  I lerve her.

Here are the shows I've finished:

Downtown Abbey
Bleh.  This season sucked.

Girls
I know so many of you love to hate this show, but I'm still into it.  And this season was great.  God, the Hampton's episode?  Please.  It's the funniest thing I've seen on tv in a loooong time.

House of Cards
I just finished this over the weekend.  Whoa!  I think I loved this second season as much as I loved the first.  And what a cliffhanger at the end!  I'm excited for the third season.

True Detective
This show completes me.  For real, this is one of the best shows I've ever watched.  Now, I was a little disappointed in the finale, but I'm going to forgive that & focus on how much I enjoyed the show.  And now I need you all to pause & watch this video:



Here are the shows that are on my radar:

The Bridge:  Bron/Broen
This show keeps showing up on my internet radar.  I'm intrigued.  I just need to figure out how to watch it.  I think it's on both Amazon Prime & Hulu.

Veronica Mars
Similar to Buffy, I've never watched Veronica Mars & now there's all this hype around it because of the Kickstarter-funded movie that's coming out.  My friend loaned me the DVDs.  I just need to watch them.

Bon appeteevee!

Weekend Wrap Up: Dragon Flags Edition

On Saturday, I went to the Y for my favorite Iyengar yoga class.  I was doing weights afterwards & my friend Mark showed me how to do this insane ab thing he was doing.  It didn't look like something I could do, but he made me try it & I could do it, so I did 3 sets of 10.  Y'all, it is Tuesday as I write this & my abs still hurt.  They're called dragon flags (dragonflies if you're real Southern).  How-to video here.  (You're welcome for the porn music that comes in at 1:39.)

After the Y, I headed to the secret Bellevue TJ Maxx to return that $16 Speedo I bought recently.  Turns out, I prefer to swim with the upper half of my body INSIDE the bathing suit.  You're welcome, Maryland Farms.  While looking for another bathing suit, I found a rack of Lucky Brand jeans for $34.99.  I bought the Sofia Skinny style in, wait for it, a SIZE 10!!!  I haven't been a size 10 in jeans since I lived in NYC, which was 10+ years ago.  Oh, hey, body I had in my twenties, welcome back.

I was in TJ Maxx for like a thousand hours.  These were my final selections:  Nike boob-containing bathing suit, silk grey pocket tee, silk blue & white button-up, Lucky jeans.  I also bought this dress online via ASOS.  I'm not convinced it's right for my body, but we'll see.  Women be shopping.

My good friend Claudia recently moved into a new house in East Nashville with her husband.  Their housewarming party was on Saturday night.  Claudia, your house is gorgeous!  Congratulations!

My Sunday lady gang was supposed to run the 11.2 in Percy Warner on Sunday, but it was pouring.  One by one, we all bailed.  Then Lana texted that she was joining East Nasty for a 6-mile run.  I had 15 minutes to get dressed & get across town, but I somehow made it & we ran our 6, rainy miles.  I was supposed to swim afterwards, but I left the house so fast that I didn't have time to pack a swim bag.  Whatever, my run was basically a swim.

John had to attend a session on Sunday, so Linda & I lounged around all day eating stuff we shouldn't & watching, basically everything.  I finished House of Cards Season Two.  Whoa!  Afterwards, I cleared out my DVR & started reading South Of Broad.  I really like it so far.  Maybe my bad book streak is over!

Weekend Wrap Up: Thanksgiving Edition

I'm starting this weekend wrap up with Thanksgiving last Thursday, so buckle up.  For the fourth year in a row, I started Thanksgiving day by running the Boulevard Bolt, a 5-mile out & back race on Belle Meade Boulevard.  Jaime bought us turkey hats to wear this year, which got me on the news.  Watch for me at 00:38 & again at 01:08.

After the race, Jaime & I grabbed coffee, then parted ways to get started on our respective Thanksgivings.  About a month or so ago, my parents decided to travel the week of Thanksgiving, so John & I decided to find other Thanksgiving-homeless people & invite them over to our house for Thanksgiving dinner.

We hosted friends & neighbors, Mike, Amanda, Melanie & Troy.  We made the bulk of the food.  John made a turkey, which was delicious, & I made most of the sides & desserts.  We ate & drank all day.  And when we got tired of that, we played Cards Against Humanity.  It was an awesome day.  Full Thanksgiving photostream here.

I'm not complaining, because I LOVED hosting Thanksgiving, but it's a 3-day job, at least.  I spent Tuesday making lists spreadsheets, grocery shopping, & prepping food.  I spent Wednesday making the food.  And I spent Thursday eating the food.  I gave myself Friday off.  And I mean off.  I didn't even get dressed.  I laid on the coach in pajama pants all day & it was glorious.

I woke up Saturday ready to re-join the world.  So I put up our Christmas tree.  This year, I only put on the white & silver ornaments, & the ones we pick up when we travel, but I left off everything else.  I think I like it...?  The jury's still out.

After putting up the tree, I headed out to meet Lauren & Tiffany for brunch.  Tiffany & Chris were flying back to NYC, so we met for a quick bite before they went to the airport.  Lauren's daughter Ella is 2 years old & Lauren's expecting her second in 3 weeks.  Tiffany's daughter Lily is 5 months old & is so much bigger than the last time I saw her.  She's sitting up now!  Oh, & my pumpkin pie baby is 3 days old & will get burned off in the gym this week.

Yesterday, my lady gang met at Bongo Java & ran an awesome 6-mile route around Music Row, Centennial Park & Vanderbilt.  I've had a lingering cold going on 2 weeks now & am still not at full lung capacity, but I ran the whole 6 miles.  It felt pretty good - no knee pain or anything.  And I ran it at about a 10-minute mile pace.  Not bad.

After the run, we went inside for coffee & breakfast.  And Lightsabor Obama.  DUH.  I spent the rest of the day watching Scandal.  I started watching it on Netflix when I got sick 2 weeks ago & finished it last night.  And, of course, now I have to wait 2 weeks for the "winter finale" - whatever that is.  Y'all, I am obsessed with this show.  I don't know how I'm going to make it 2 weeks until the next episode.  If you see me around town, give me a little pat, because I'm going to be really struggling.

Summer TV

{Source}

This is a super serious, super heavy post on the important topic of what I've been watching on tv this summer.  To know me is to know my love of television.  THANK GOD I don't have to track my tv watching like I do my calorie consumption.  I always think to myself when I see those 'Kill Your Television' bumper stickers, Oh, you poor, joyless human.

Let's start with the shows I've started & finished:

Freak and Geeks
This show is so good!  I can't believe I waited so long to watch it.  I watched all 18 episodes on Netflix Instant in 1-2 weeks.  It's a teen comedy-drama set in the 1980-81 school year.  Judd Apatow is the executive producer & most of the cast has gone on to become BFD's, e.g. James Franco, Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, etc.  On the surface, it's a show about high school kids listening to Who & smoking doobies, but it's sooo much more.  I already miss this show & am thinking about re-watching it.  Here's one of my favorite clips:



The Americans
I actually recorded The Americans back when it aired, but just recently got around to watching it.  OMG, y'all.  This show!  The first season aired on FX in January, but it just got picked up for a second season.  Yay!  It's a drama created & produced by a former CIA agent.  It's set in the 80's & is about two Soviet KGB officers (read:  spies) posing as a married couple in the suburbs of D.C.  Oh, & their neighbor is an FBI Counter-Intelligence agent.  If you're a fan of Homeland, you'll like this.  And the music is pretty awesome.  John kept coming upstairs while I was watching it & asking, "What are you watching?  They're playing Tusk."

Those are the only two shows I've watched from beginning to end, but there are a three new shows I'm in the process of watching:

Veep
This show is my spirit animal.  I love it so much.  I'm halfway through the second season.

True Blood
I can't stop.  No matter how far HBO strays from the plot line in the books, I keep watching.  I mean, I can't imagine why....  ALEXANDER SKARSGARD.

Project Runway
Oy.  I'm so inexplicably loyal to this show.  I'm still annoyed that it's on Lifetime & I'm still annoyed that it's 90 minutes long, but I keep tuning in.  God, that weird one this season who doesn't believe in hair & make-up?  Come on!  I do, however, like the changes they've made to the runway portion of the show.  I like that they've added Tim Gunn, that they've given him a save & that they look at the outfits up close before deciding.  I just wish they'd cut it back to a 60 minute show.

I've got a few shows recorded that I need to watch:  The Newsroom, Hannibal, & Under the Dome.  I've heard good things about Hannibal.  Anyone else watch it?  I read the book(s), so maybe I'll like it...?

Last, but not least, I've got two shows on my radar that, according to the ENTIRE WORLD, I need to start watching ASAP:  Orange is the New Black & Buffy The Vampire Slayer.  If you're spending your days not in a coma, then you know what Orange is the New Black is, but I'll elaborate on Buffy.  Similar to Freaks and Geeks, Buffy references come up a lot in conversations with friends & I'm realizing I never really watched it.  So maybe I will.  It's on Netflix.  And I'm going to need something to do in two weeks when I'm no longer working out for 4 hours a day.

Anything I left out?

Weekend Wrap Up: Natchez Trace Edition

On Friday night, I saw by boo, Jordan at Salon NFuse for a trim & highlight.  Then I came home to find one of John's clients *riding the dragon in our garage.  Because that's something that happens?!  Said client rode that dragon right on out of here, John left for the night & I made myself spaghetti & kept on with my Fourth of July The Americans marathon.

*Contrary to the 1,000 episodes of Intervention I've seen, I have no idea what "riding the dragon" means.  In the event that it means anything related to heroin &/or crack, that's not what I meant & I apologize to any present &/or future employers who had the misfortune of finding this blog in a Google search.

On Saturday, in the POURING RAIN, I drove to East Nashville to coach my Potato to Tomato group. We ran the 3 mile Tomato 5K course.  In the rain.  Did I mention it was raining?  Towards the end of the run, I heard one of the runners say she had to go to open water swim practice after the run.  I also had to go to open water swim practice after the run, so I ran up to her & found out we were going to the same place.  I went & got Lana, she went & got her husband & we met back up at Anderson Road Beach Area.

Y'all, it was POURING.  And had been for 3 days.  The guard shack attendant was really hesitant to let us in to swim.  He said the beach was flooded & the water level poles were under water - to BE CAREFUL.  We parked, were the only car/people there, walked down to the water & decided not to do it.  Then our friends pulled up.  The four of us stood there looking at the swim area for a long time & ultimately decided to do it.  Paul, Karen's husband, is training for Ironman Louisville & felt fine about it.  He offered to go in first & let us follow behind him.  Getting in was the hardest part.  Once we were in, we just swam like normal.

I mean, there was zero visibility under water & all kinds of weird stuff touched me that never touches me, but it was fine.  It was actually nice to swim with three other people because I could practice passing.  I also swam a lot harder & faster because I was trying to keep up with Paul & Karen.  In fact, I swam so HAM that I have bruises on my arm that appear to be broken capillaries.  HAM, y'all.  Totes HAM.

Afterwards at Barista, Lana & I were talking about all the different things that irrationally scare us in open water.  I told her about the movie The Impossible & that every single time we start open water swimming, I envision a tsunami hitting & all this shit hitting me under water, like cars, at a really high speed.  Then Lana lays a game changer on me & proceeds to tell me about this movie where a serial killer chains his lady victims to concrete blocks at the bottom of a lake in full hair & makeup.  So every time Lana gets in open water & feels something brush past her (which happens about every 30 seconds), she envisions it's either one of the dead ladies at the bottom of the lake, OR the killer trying to pull her down & add her to his collection.  Real talk.

On Sunday, our new tri training friend Karen invited Lana & I to join her on Natchez Trace for a ride.  We met at Mile Marker 440 & rode 20 miles.  I loved it!  I didn't clip in since it was my first time on the Trace, but I bought shoes this weekend & will probably be clipping in from now on.  Watch out, world!

Weekend Wrap Up: David Sedaris Edition

David Sedaris is one of my favorite authors & he did a speaking/book signing event at Parnassus Books on Friday night.  I've since learned that none of my friends knew about this event, so take a minute & head over to Parnassus' site & sign up to receive their email updates.  Their events are small & usually fill up fast, but being on their email list ensures you find out first.

This was actually my first Parnassus event & it was totally awesome.  I RSVP-ed late, so I sat outside as opposed to being in-store, but it was fine.  I brought a chair & they provided everything else, including free catering from Chinatown, Donut Den & Harvest Breads.  Oh, & a photobooth.  I had a lot of fun.  David read a chapter from his new book, read a couple hilarious dog poems & then read about 15-20 minutes of diary entries from his own diaries.  A lot of the entries were written recently after his other book signing events, so it was funny & mildly uncomfortable to know that he would go to his hotel room & write about what some of us said &/or wore.  He's amazing & I'm so glad he keeps coming back to Nashville.

This was a weird weekend in that I didn't have a lot to do.  Because of scheduling & weather, I didn't have any work-outs lined up, which usually take up the majority of my weekend.  In addition, John was out of the house all day Saturday, so Linda & I sat downstairs & read the first half of my new David Sedaris book.  What?  Linda can totally read.

I took a break from reading & watching Freaks & Geeks on Netflix to get the mail & found my birthday Birchbox had arrived.  I'll explain.  I received two Birchbox gift cards as birthday presents (thanks, April & Claudia!), so I ordered a bunch of stuff I typically wouldn't have bought for myself.  You know, like $18 body wash that will be gone in two weeks.

John's friend Michael is leaving us for NYC this week & Saturday was his going-away party.  For what was actually kind of a sad event, the party was the most fun we've had in a long time, venturing on ever.  Everyone in the world we know was there, plus there was tons of really good food.  And by food, I mean cupcakes, of which I had 1,000.  Oh, & John wore is bolo tie.  I just felt like that needed to be pointed out.  If you look carefully, his shirt is pointing at it.

After Michael's party, we went to see our friends, Dead Confederate, play at The High Watt.  Let the record show that not only did I got to a party & a rock show, I did them on the same night & didn't get home until almost 2am.  Who am I?!

Needless to say, yesterday was kind of a throw-away day.  I slept until 9am, which is the latest I've slept since my twenties, then woke John up to take me to ML Rose for a heaping basket of ranchero fries.  I think the only other thing I did yesterday was lay on the couch digesting cheese & watching more *Freaks & Geeks.

*I keep getting pulled into conversations involving Freaks & Geeks lately & not remembering any of the references.  Turns out, I never watched Freaks & Geeks.  I don't what I think I watched, but it wasn't it.  So this weekend, I dug in & watched the first 6 of the 18 episodes.  It may be the best show I've ever (never?) watched.