Running and Cookies

I'm getting so FRUSTRATED! I'm six weeks into my half marathon training- which is still in the prelim 5K training stages, if you remember... yes, I am THAT out of shape. But that's not the frustrating part...

Being the glass half full kinda gal that I am, let's start with some positivity. Check out how my 5K training schedule has been shaping up!

If I have the ability to "cross things off", you better believe diligence quickly becomes my middle NAME! (That one week had to be ENTIRELY crossed off in order to bump my training schedules up one week in order to finish in time for the Chicago half marathon on 9/11/11).

So hooray! I've gotten up to 3 miles already! Trust me, I was on a total high about this fact on Tuesday, when I ran my first 3 mile leg (at like 5:30 AM, because please- I was SO not going to be running at ANY other time of that day of like 95 degree heat and humidity... gag me).

So I figured today's 2 mile interim run would be a piece of cake. And I was actually secretly a little thrilled that it was F'ING cold outside (for June, at least!)... that was all the excuse I needed to traipse on over to my secret, free gym (shady, sure... let's think of it more as "economical") to run on the treadmill. I know, I know, I was wimping out because it's a lot easier to run on the treadmill than outside, but in my (weak) defense- it was COLD outside!

Yeah right. SO not the workout that I was expecting. It was one of the hardest runs so far! I have absolutely no idea why. All I know is that I could NOT keep my eyes away from the treadmill's darn indicator screen every, oh, 0.10 miles... I know, right? Do you know how LONG 2 miles feels when you're checking the treadmill screen THAT frequently? The Kardashians were playing on the gym TV for some solid distraction and everything! I simply DON'T KNOW what my problem was.

Maybe it was the fact that my my left earphone has busted out, so my music was like BLARING in my right ear... a little painfully, actually. Or maybe it was the fact that I really don't have all that MUCH music on my Ipod as it is (what? I'm not the biggest music person!)... but a girl can apparently only listen to Lady Gaga (the only music on my Ipod that totally pumps me UP enough for running!) for so long before it starts getting old...

Or maybe it was the fact that I was all congested because I'm more than likely getting sick... yet again this year... because of this DARN WEATHER. Dear Chicago, I love you dearly, but I SWEAR, if your weather doesn't STOP fluctuating 40 degrees per day, I am going to have a FIT.

Sigh. I know, I know- woe is me. I'm just frustrated today! I can't help it! What's a girl going to do?

When in doubt...

Bake some cookies! Hahaha. How the act of baking (not to mention the act of EATING) cookies wouldn't cheer up any old soul is beyond my realm of understanding. SO, after I got home from my fine Thursday Dinner Club Mexican feast (XO, Cheryl and Alma!), I took the liberty of whipping up a batch of...

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip & Walnut Cookies... I know - YUM! Lunchtime snack for the next couple of weeks, that is for DARN CERTAIN.

Running and cookies... I can't think of a better combination, can you?? Hahaha. I know, I know- after going for a long, hard workout, most people are craving a glass of water or something. But you know me and my sentiments on THAT whole idea (please refer to my blog entry: "The... List of Things I Don't Like that Most Normal People Do... but I'm not picky!!" http://bit.ly/lbvis3).

Darn straight. Cookies it is!

The Cosby Show - Timelessness Epitomized

Sigh. I made sure to pre-coordinate this week's post-work activities to ensure that I was as free as a bird tonight. After all, I already knew I had at LEAST two whole hours of DVR to which to commit, since I was already sad enough that I couldn't catch the LIVE version of Meredith Vieira's last day on Today.

While I was joking with some folks earlier today about likely tearing up while watching my DVR this evening, I didn't think it would turn into some out-and-out SOBfest! What the heck. I know I adore the Meredith (who doesn't?), but I had no idea that the adoration had reached tearjerker level. I have no idea whether it was Meredith herself, the lovely farewell-fest the Today show put together, seeing the others crying (I'm such a sucker- if I see someone, ANYone crying, I automatically start tearing up as well)...

Whatever the case, talk about needing some serious cheering up after the fact. But... I guess that's the whole problem with making sure your entire night is clear for your DVR. What else could I do to distract myself, let alone cheer myself up?

God, that DVR. What in heaven's name did I ever do without it?

You better believe I immediately DVR'ed my way on over to...

I mean, if the ladies of The View can't cheer you up, who really can? I know, I know- so many people would beg to differ. But I stand firm... I LOVE THE VIEW! I have loved them since their origins almost 15 years ago (YES, they are JUST that GOOD!)!!! I mean, if you can't count on Sherri, Joy, Whoopi and Elizabeth to make you laugh, what can you really count on?

Yeah. So much for that theory. Because of course, of COURSE, their first Hot Topic was regarding Meredith's grand farewell on the Today show. Not only would it be a Hot Topic in general since it's a headliner of a story, but it particularly holds a special spot in Joy's heart since Meredith was ON The View with Joy prior to switching over to Today.

Needless to say, watching the first few minutes of The View certainly did NOT accomplish the cheering up I so needed from my Meredith withdrawal. Even JOY teared up at the Today show farewell, and I can't ever imagine her crying. I quickly needed a change...

Thank GOD I've started DVR'ing The Cosby Show over the past week. Best. Decision. Ever. With the departure of Oprah, I've realized that I have a WHOLE lot more space on my DVR and I'm such a fan of having the TV on as background noise on occasion. So, I had the brilliant idea of starting to DVR some of my old favorites (you know, shows from the '80s, when there were some seriously LEGIT sitcoms going on), since I'm not the biggest fan of primetime TV nowadays.

UMMM!!!! I haven't watched an episode of The Cosby Show in SO LONG and watching this episode TOTALLY did the trick! Almost immediately, I was giggling at Rudy's shenanigans (it was the one where she totally has a crush on this boy in her class, Clarence... awww!) and literally BURSTING out laughing at some of Cliff and Clair's banter (are they NOT the most perfect item, EVER... let's be honest here).

I can't believe how a simple episode from 25 YEARS AGO can STILL make me laugh aloud, when just minutes ago, I had been sobfesting it up with the Today Show farewell. Timeless, really.

Needless to say, I am absolutely DELIGHTED that I've decided to take it upon myself to rediscover old classics in this technological, DVR-driven day and age (not that I'm complaining!!).

It actually got me thinking about my absolute FAVORITE Cosby Show episodes (the one where the Huxtables treat Theo to "the real world", the one where Denise introduces her HUSBAND and Olivia to Cliff/Clair with "Mom! I'm a MOM!" (hahahahah!!), the one where Vanessa gets drunk... amongst others, obvi) and got me all excited in hopes that these'll be caught on my DVR in the VERY near future! Not only that, but NOW, I'm kind of wondering what OTHER sitcoms I can start DVR'ing... Fresh Prince, Full House, Growing Pains, Who's the Boss? GOD, were the late '80s, early '90s legit or WHAT?

So, I guess this defeats the whole purpose of gaining a lot more non-DVR watching free time now that Oprah is no longer dominating my DVR, but WHATEVER! Who can say no to some good, ol' fashioned late '80s, early '90s television??

No one can.

And HEAVENS, no one ever SHOULD.

Twitter, Retweets and the TODAY SHOW!!

So I joined Twitter a couple of months ago, per some strong encouragement by the one and only Evan Fleming (yes, I will reference him each and everytime I blog about Twitter... giving credit where credit is due and all that). Anyway, for full details about my initial Twitter experience, please refer to the blog post "I'm on Twitter... now what?"(http://bit.ly/ii2XZc) .

I was initially hesitant even to join Twitter. First off, I didn't really understand the point - I mean, who CARES about a nonstop list of status updates of a bunch of random people/places? Not only that, but MAN, it takes some WORK to upstart/maintain your Twitter world. Like... finding people/places to follow, getting people/places to follow you, updating your tweets on a regular basis... who's got the time, really? I, for one, have my DVR on which to catch up! Haha... just kidding... now that Oprah's no longer on, my DVR has surprisingly cleared up rather quickly...

Anyway! Then today happened (no pun intended!).

And my whole Twitter perspective did a complete 180.

First off, I just have to say... it is nothing short of amazing what can happen once you start tweeting on a regular basis!! Granted, most of my tweets are pointless tidbits about my life and/or retweets of interesting articles that others are posting. And sure, I would occasionally get retweeted or mentioned (mostly by my friends), which does make my heart go all a'flutter, not going to lie.

But... why, hello there, TODAY (no pun intended, again... haha), June 7, 2011... a day I shall remember for the rest of my days. Let's just say the heart fluttering went into full-blown coronary mode when, literally one minute after posting a response to the Today Show's tweet about submitting your favorite Meredith Vieira moment (#MeredithMoment), I had THIS pop up in my Inbox....

Now, I don't know about YOU, but it is NOT everyday that the TODAY SHOW POPS UP IN MY INBOXsljfakdsjflkajdsflkjLKJ!L!!l I genuinely thought I was hallucinating for a second (yes, I do get that excited about things), but you know me... QA, QA, QA! Hahaha. You better believe that as soon as I saw that pop up, I Alt+Tabbed (God, I'm such a nerd) on over to my Twitter homepage to confirm. And would you look at that?

Right there on the Twitter homepage!!lkajflksjdf!!!

Maliyacular and the TODAY SHOW SIDE BY SIDE!!!!! A vision of the future, if you will... GOD CAN YOU IMAGINE?!?!

Sigh. And there went my productivity levels for the day. Hahaha. I just couldn't stop thinking about how MAGICAL Twitter is... there I was all disappointed that The Today Show didn't air my interview regarding the taping of the Oprah finale, when lo and beHOLD, the magical world of Twitter totally dissolved ANY Today Show animosity that previously existed (which, let's be honest, was not very much anyway... who am I kidding- I LOVE THE TODAY SHOW!!).

And you know what made this whole first-time-being-tweeted-by-a-celebrity experience even better?

The fact that they retweeted something I genuinely did care about! From her days on The View (that's right, I was still shameless back in the day and totally snagged a photo with her during a commercial break for a taping of The View) to her days on Today, I have been an ardent Meredith Vieira supporter. As I told her when I met her... she is one of my idols (okay, okay, so I really have no shame... and no FILTER... when it comes to talking to celebrities!). Seriously, though, she possesses the perfect balance of knowledge, personableness, charisma and... well, craziness! WHO are we kidding here? She totally brightened up my mornings with her naturally zany nature. Anyway, while I'm sad she won't be part of my morning Today Show-watching routine any longer, I'm excited for whatever else she has in store... she hasn't let me down yet, why would she start now?