Winter Running

It is unseasonably cold in Tennessee right now. As it's usually not this cold until January/February, I don't have winter running gear yet. I asked for it for Christmas, thinking I'd be fine until then. Oh, so wrong.

I've been running in normal work-out pants & then layering on top with a long sleeved shirt & a big, thick hoodie. I quickly learned this summer why wearing dry-weave running clothes are important, but I thought the main goal in the winter was to stay warm, dry-weave be damned. Yeah, not so much as it turns out.

The problem with cotton in the winter is that as you sweat (yes, you still sweat in the winter), your clothes get wet & keep you cold, whereas dry-weave, cold gear pulls the moisture away from your body, thus keeping you warmer. Unfortunately, dry-weave, cold gear isn't cheap, especially the good stuff. I'm talking to you, Under Armour...

On Wednesday night, it was 29-ish degrees outside. Yeah, cold. And it was my least favorite East Nasty route because the last time I ran it, I had a really hard time keeping up & not getting lost. And! During the run last week, it was so cold that I could hardly finish due to leg cramps, which I've never had before. WTF? So on Wednesday, I kept thinking I'd just skip it because what if my legs cramped up again, or I got lost, etc. But alas, I went.

I put on my normal, thin-ish work-out pants, my fancy, long-sleeved Lululemon shirt & a hoodie. I knew my legs would be cold, but my core was pretty warm. A) I totally went HAM on the run & not only didn't get lost, but I ran the whole thing & stayed with the front of the pack. B) I think I got frost bite.

When I got home & took my work-out pants off, I was bright red from the waist down, like raw bacon red. I looked sunburned. It was pretty ridiculous. So I put on my flannel reindeer pajamas that John LOVES (not really) & set about drinking as much hot chocolate as it took to return my skin to its natural pallor. I woke up with normal looking legs, so no harm, no foul. But I did immediately set out looking for warmer pants. Again, I've asked for some fancy schmancy running tights for Christmas, so I just needed a cheaper pair to get me through. Ahhh, Target, how do I love thee, let me count the ways....

Purchased at Target: 1 pair of base layer running tights for $24.99 & 1 base layer fleece pullover for $14.99. I ran in this outfit, plus a dry-weave long-sleeved shirt yesterday morning & was snug as a bug in a rug. Plus! No raw bacon legs. Score!

At The Movies

In all of my free time, I've watched a lot of movies, two of which I found blog-worthy, and no, I'm not talking about Nothing Like the Holidays, which I made the mistake of watching via Netflix Instant Streaming. Unless you're Puerto Rican &/or from Chicago, I do not recommend this movie. Fans of Debra Messing will weep over the tragedy that is her hair & wardrobe. Weep!

I digress. So here are the two movies I did enjoy.

Rachel Getting Married

This movie is from 2008, so a lot of you have probably already seen it. It earned Anna Hathaway an Oscar nomination for Best Actress. Speaking of, I love it when Anne Hathaway goes dark. In this movie, she's a former model who's in rehab & gets released for a few days to attend her sister's wedding at their parents' house. It's mostly about the relationship between the two sisters, but it's also about general family dysfunction. Anne's character, Kym, is a hot mess, but not the annoying type that you spend the entire movie wanting to slap. Instead you find yourself empathizing with her & hoping it all works out in the end. It's directed by Jonathan Demme, of The Silence of the Lambs fame. Yeah, did I mention this movie is dark? I really, really liked this movie & highly recommend it.

The Time Traveler's Wife

I was holding out on watching this movie until I read the book, but alas, I haven't read the book & forgot to move this down on my Netlfix queue, so when it came in the mail, I watched it. Disclaimer: I love both Rachel McAdams & Eric Bana, so I was probably predisposed to enjoy this movie. Bana's character, Henry, has a genetic disorder that allows him to time travel. I know, but trust me, it's not as distracting as it sounds. McAdams' character, Clare, meets Henry when she's a little girl & ultimately ends up marrying him. The science fiction aspect of this story was lost on me as I have no interest in science, whereas the romantic aspect was not. For me, this movie was about the relationship & marriage of Henry & Clare. It's a great love story. Also, this movie is visually stunning. I loved the settings all throughout this movie. Highly, highly recommend this movie. P.S. The movie is grittier & a lot less Lifetime Movie Network than the below trailer would lead you to believe.

Weekend Wrap Up

Friday:

Katie treated me to dinner at this AMAZING thai restaurant in Smyrna called Thida Thai. It was so good! Possibly the best thai I've ever had. Thanks, Katie!

Saturday:

My friend Heidi works at Lululemon, so I've been going with her to these free Lululemon-hosted yoga classes. (More info here.) So I met Heidi Saturday morning for a free yoga class at Yoga Source in Cummins Station. I loved it! I'm really getting back into yoga, especially these classes because they're so much more challenging than what I'm used to. I'm sweating as much in these classes as I do in Spin!

For our friend Amanda's birthday, we went to dinner at Miss Saigon, where I decided to try pho for the first time. I'm hesitant to report this, but I kind of hated pho. Long story short, I ended up getting in a shouting match with them because they gave me the wrong thing, never came back to the table & then wouldn't take it off our bill. This was our second time at Miss Saigon. The first time was awesome -good food, good service. Not so much this time. They're out of the rotation for now.

Sunday:

Yesterday I made the mistake of going into David Kidd. It's so sad! I felt like a vulture picking apart a carcass. That being said, everything in the store is at least 30% off, some things 40-50%, so there are definitely deals to be had. It's just so sad.... RIP David Kidd. RIP...

I also started Season 3 of Friday Night Lights yesterday, and subsequently watched 5 episodes. Ya'll! It might be time for an FNL intervention.....

Ma Ma Ma Ma

One of my favorite blogs, TeenAngster, posted a video yesterday of this bizarre Christmas song that I couldn't get enough of. I forwarded it to John & he said it's this German disco group from the 70s & that their producer is the same guy who orchestrated the whole Milli Vanilli scandal. He also mentioned that Lady Gaga sampled one of their songs for "Poker Face."

John is constantly quizzing me on music-related things that I don't have the wherewithal to figure out, i.e. "I just fixed the tape machine. Listen to this & tell me which song is coming from the tape machine & which one is coming from the console." Yeah, I had no idea.

So he pulls up this song/video that Lady Gaga apparently sampled & said, "don't worry, it will be obvious." And it totally was (see 1:03). So without further ado, I present to you, Boney M.

Dear Santa,

Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary by David Sedaris, $10

Madewell Colorblock Bangle in Parakeet, $12

Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People by Amy Sedaris, $14

Decoded by Jay-Z, $18

Cast Iron Horse Hook, Monkey & Squirrel via Etsy, $18

2011 Bunny Calendar, The Paper Thieves via Etsy $25

Kaleidoscope Felt Collage Necklace, Homako via Etsy $28

Spice of Life Cardigan, Modcloth, $42

Juliet Tote in Dark Blue Denim, Christy Studio via Etsy $42

Canvas Women's Classics in Olive, Tom's, $44

Zoe Statement Multichain, White Owl via Etsy, $48

Autumn Wheat Dress, Modcloth, $67

Twilight Cardigan in Heather Medium Grey, Madewell, $72

Dinner Party Cardigan in Golden Olive, Madewell, $78

Nightfall Cardigan in Grizzly Brown, Madewell, $82

This year I've asked for a lot of stuff I need, e.g. an immersion blender & running tights, so I thought I'd compile a list of stuff I don't need & can't afford. Thank you for taunting me, Madewell.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

Book Review: How Did You Get This Number

How Did You Get This Number is the second book by Sloane Crosley. It's similar to her first book in that it's a collection of essays & short stories about her life in NYC. Here's the blurb from Amazon/Publisher's Weekly:

Nine thoughtful, unfussy essays that navigate around illusions of youth in the hope that by young adulthood they'll all add up to happiness. The account of Crosley's footloose adventure to Lisbon on the eve of her 30th birthday starts things off in rollicking fashion in Show Me on the Doll: without proficient language skills, getting hopelessly lost in the labyrinth of Bairro Alto, and panicking in front of the myriad QVC channels offered by her hotel, Crosley recognizes that Lisbon was a place with a painfully disproportionate self-reflection-to-experience ratio. There is the requisite essay about moving to New York and replacing her anorexic-kleptomaniac roommate with a more acceptable living arrangement: in Crosley's case, delineated in Take a Stab at It, she is interviewed by the creepily disembodied current occupier of a famous former brothel on the Bowery, McGurk's Suicide Hall. As well, Crosley delivers witty, syncopated takes on visiting Alaska and Paris, and finding much consolation from a two-timing heartbreak in New York by buying stolen items from her upholstery guy, Daryl, who found them fallen Off the Back of a Truck, as the delightful last selection is titled. These essays are fresh, funny, and eager to be loved.

She's a very funny writer & if you liked her first book, you'll assuredly enjoy this one as well. If you've ever lived in NYC, you'll identify with a lot of her stories. You'll also find yourself wondering why in the world you haven't written a book yet, especially if you're unemployed & currently doing absolutely nothing all day....

P.S. If any of you want to borrow either of Sloane's books, I have both.

Weekend Wrap Up

Friday:

I got up early & met MK for a very cold recovery run, then we met MHG at Pancake Pantry for breakfast. On the way home, I took a detour through the West Nashville Shopping Center, just to see what the crowds were like & ended up in Old Navy, where I bought what I'm calling my 'Tiffany Tomlin outfit': black skinny jeans with a red & white checked shirt. I also bought a pair of $5 pajama pants, because, HELLO, they were $5.

That night, as we were deciding what to do for dinner, Ashlee texted & said she & Jeff were around the corner, so we met them for dinner at Sonobana. I see Ashlee all the time, but it was nice to catch up as a foursome.

Saturday:

I got up Saturday morning & went to Spin at the Downtown Y. I used to go to that class all the time, but I quit awhile back because I don't love the instructor. Yeah, she still sucks. I actually almost got up & left in the middle of the class. She started the class by telling us she was going to "take it easy today". Yeah, because that's why we're all in there post-Thanksgiving, to 'take it easy'. I had easily 6 pieces of pie to burn off. She had us work on our endurance by staying at a constant 4 (out of 10) for the whole class. No speed, no standing. Complete waste of time. I could have burned more calories shopping.

Saturday night we went to dinner with Matt & Lacey, who recently got married. They recommended Woodlands Indian Vegetarian Cuisine. I was excited because I've wanted to eat there for years, but I was worried about what in the world my carnivore husband would eat. It was so good! I don't even think John noticed there was no meat on his plate. If you go, & you should, order #48, the Woodlands Special Rava Masala dosa. OMG! Best thing EVER.

Sunday:

The check engine light in my car came on over the weekend. Of course it did. So I spent $150 for Firestone to change my oil & tell me my gas cap was loose. I wish I was kidding. I spent the rest of the day putting up all of our Christmas decorations & watching Fa La La La Lifetime.