One month later...

frozen butterbeer!

So it’s been quite a month!! Casey and I celebrated one year of legalized name-sharing and Katie cheered on her favorite Coppola while he rowed his heart out. Katie went to the land of chocolate and cheese and we visited the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Let me tell you, frozen butterbeer is the nectar of the gods (follow the link for awesome pics and recipes by someone who knows what she's talking about). 

And when you don’t want something sweet, Universal Studios is happy to indulge your alcohol tooth with Hog’s Head ale and Strongbow Hard Cider in commemorative mugs from the Three Broomsticks.

plenty of adult options!

Then I headed back to Pullman to teach impressionable minds about psychology and the art/science of personality. They learned their shape, color, traits according to Tibetan wisdom, nonverbal communication, handwriting analysis, and some old-school science experiments, some of which are the reason a doctoral student like me has to be, like, ethical and follow IRB. I understand their perspectives that ethics can be lame; on the other hand, they can keep you from being sued, which is positive.

It was awesome to be back in Pullman! Aside from the weed jungle monster that was my backyard, I got to see some good friends, “work” on my dissertation, and use an open window as air conditioner at night. See below for the before & after photos of the yard—thank goodness our landloard cut it because the weed-whacker definitely raised a white flag when I tried to tame the beast…

before...

After

You may be thinking, “Isn’t this a blog about running?” Well yes, yes it is. And I have been running. I think I turned a corner in my training. I’m now jogging more than walking. That’s right folks!! I am very, VERY proud of myself for this. I credit Pullman weather. For two weeks, it was about 45 degrees outside when I was running. This means that I needed to get my butt MOVING in order to not shiver myself into oblivion. And yes, this is a full 40 degrees cooler than my Savannah runs, even though it was the same time of day. So I was able to try out some hills in addition to my jawbone’s favorite trail. On my last day, I logged over 10 miles in under 2 hours, which I never thought would happen. Did my high school P.E. coach ever think it would happen? As the gnome who lives within the Magic 8 Ball would indicate, “Outlook not so good.” 

Did this sudden shift stay with me upon my return to Savannah? Well… let’s just say I’m still jogging more than I’m walking and leave it there. You should ac-cen—tuate the positive, right? Right?! As for my next post, get excited, because I’ll be talking about fitness gear. With photos!!! YAY!!!