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Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Books read in 2010

I'm only halfway through the book, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson, and I really like it. It has been a really fast read, the characters are interested and it has a really great story. I do have the second book, The Girl Who Played With Fire, waiting to be read. As for the third book, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, I will have to buy the hardcover to finish the series. I was hoping I could wait until it came out in paperback. Since I'm liking the first book so much, I doubt that will happen.

Bobby and Jackie: A Love Story, C. David Heymann
Fletch, Too, Gregory Mcdonald
American Legacy: The Story of John and Caroline Kennedy, C. David Heymann
Tis Herself: An Autobiography, Maureen O'Hara and John Nicoletti
A Woman Named Jackie: An Intimate Biography of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis, C. David Heymann
John F. Kennedy, President, Hugh Sidey
Oswald's Tale: An American Mystery, Norman Mailer
First Ladies: The Saga of the Presidents Wives and Their Power 1789-1961, Carl Sferrazza Anthony
The Saga of the Presidents Wives and Their Power 1961-1990, Carl Sferrazza Anthony
Real Life at the White House: 200 years of daily life at America's famous residence, John Whitcomb
Amelia Earhart, Tanya Lee Stone
The Thirty-Nine Steps, John Buchan
Hungry, Crystal Reen with Marjorie Ingall
Harry S. Truman, Robert Dallek
The Murder of King Tut: The Plot to Kill the Child King, James Patterson
Shutter Island, Dennis Lehane
Duchess of Death: The Unauthorized Biography of Agatha Christie, Richard Hack
Alice: Alice Roosevelt Longworth, from White House Princess to Washington Power Broker, Stacy A. Cordery
Murder on the Orient Express, Agatha Christie
From Love Field: Our Final Hours with President John F. Kennedy, Nellie Connally & Mickey Herskowitz
After the Funeral, Agatha Christie
The Mysterious Affair at Styles, Agatha Christie
Best Evidence, David S. Lifton
The Secret of the Old Clock, Carolyn Keene
The Hidden Staircase, Carolyn Keene
The Bungalow Mystery, Carolyn Keene
The Mystery at Lilac Inn, Carolyn Keene
The Secret of Red Gate Farm, Carolyn Keene
The Message in The Hollow Oak, Carolyn Keene
The Whispering Statue, Carolyn Keene
The Haunted Bridge, Carolyn Keene
The Mystery of the Brass Bound Trunk, Carolyn Keene
The Secret in the Old Attic, Carolyn Keene
The Clue in The Crumbling Wall, Carolyn Keene
The Clue of the Leaning Chimney, Carolyn Keene
The Secret of the Wooden Lady, Carolyn Keene
Mystery at the Ski Jump, Carolyn Keene
Clue of the Velvet Mask, Carolyn Keene
The Witch Tree Symbol, Carolyn Keene
The Hidden Window Mystery, Carolyn Keene
The Haunted Showboat, Carolyn Keene
The Secret of the Golden Pavilion, Carolyn Keene
The Clue in the Old Stagecoach, Carolyn Keene
The Moonstone Castle Mystery, Carolyn Keene
The Mystery of the 99 Steps, Carolyn Keene
The Invisible Intruder, Carolyn Keene
The Secret of Mirror Bay, Carolyn Keene
Mystery of the Glowing Eye, Carolyn Keene
The Secret of the Forgotten City, Carolyn Keene
The Strange Message in the Parchment, Carolyn Keene
The Mystery of Crocodile Island, Carolyn Keene
Dead Until Dark, Charlaine Harris
Living Dead in Dallas, Charlaine Harris
Club Dead, Charlaine Harris
Dead to the World, Charlaine Harris
Dead as a Doornail, Charlaine Harris
Definitely Dead, Charlaine Harris
All Together Dead, Charlaine Harris
From Dead to Worse, Charlaine Harris
Dead and Gone, Charlaine Harris
Dead in the Family, Charlaine Harris
In The Valley of the Kings: Howard Carter and the Mystery of King Tutankhamen's Tomb, Daniel Heyerson
Mystery of the Fire Dragon, Carolyn Keene
The Thirteenth Pearl, Carolyn Keene
The Triple Hoax, Carolyn Keene
The Flying Saucer Mystery, Carolyn Keene
Dark Lover: Black Dagger Brotherhood, J. R. Ward
Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times and Corruption of Atlantic City, Nelson Johnson
Puppetmaster: The Secret Life of J. Edgar Hoover, Richard Hack
Get Capone, Jonathan Eig
Lady Bird, Jan Jarboe Russell
In the President's Secret Service: Behind the Scenes with Agents in the Line of Fire and the Presidents they Protect, Ronald Kessler
The Kids Are All Right: A Memoir, Diana Welch, Liz Welch, Amanda Welch & Dan Welch
The Kennedy Imprisonment, Garry Wills
The Corrections, Jonathan Franzen
Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.: Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the Dawn of the Modern Woman, Sam Wasson
Speak, Laurie Halse Anderson
Dirty Sexy Politics, Meghan McCain
Wintergirls, Laurie Halse Anderson
Nothing But a Smile, Steve Amick
If I Stay, Gayle Forman
Listen, Rene Gutteridge
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Seth Grahame-Smith
13 1/2, Nevada Barr
Shanghai Girls, Lisa See
Breach of Trust, DiAnn Mills
A Million Little Pieces, James Frey
Absolute Power, David Baldacci
Drowning Ruth, Christina Schwarz
Lady Killer, Lisa Scottoline

Daddy's Girl, Lisa Scottoline

Sworn to Protect, DiAnn Mills

Devil's Corner, Lisa Scottoline

Look Again, Lisa Scottoline

Moment of Truth, Lisa Scottoline

Courting Trouble, Lisa Scottoline

Decision Points, George W. Bush

Pursuit of Justice, DiAnn Mills

True Blue, David Baldacci

Currently Reading: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Steig Larsson

Up Next: The Girl Who Played With Fire, Steig Larsson

Monday, November 29, 2010

Short week

This week is a very short work week for me. I'm only working today and Tuesday. On Wednesday, I start my vacation. Besides running, packing and dropping the dogs off at the kennel, I really won't be doing much. I'm very happy to say that. Vacations are a time to relax.

Friday, November 26, 2010

Nike Cross Nationals

I was so excited when I received an email Tuesday evening. The email detailed my upcoming trip to the 2010 Nike Cross Nationals in Portland, Oregon that I won.

The agenda for the weekend, the other winners, my husband and I will closely mirror the athletes running in the Nike Cross Nationals. We will be spending time at the Nike World Headquarters in Beaverton. Besides the National Championships races, I'm looking forward to the elite athlete autograph session. I can't wait to see the elite runners in person. I wonder who will be at the session. It doesn't matter, it will be awesome no matter what.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon

I didn't run an official Turkey Trot this year. But I did run on Thanksgiving morning. I ran 13.1 miles this morning. It was my own personal half marathon.

Besides the fact that I love running. I love running on holidays. It makes me feel good knowing that I already got my exercise done for the day. Also, later I won't feel as bad when I eat a couple of sweets.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

William & Kate

I was excited to read last week of Prince William's and Kate Middleton's engagement. I'm interested in royalty. Not all royalty. Only a certain few. My favorite monarchs are Princess Grace of Monaco and Diana, Princess of Wales.

What brought Grace and Diana to my attention was first their beauty. Both were attractive blonde's. The second was they were both outsides to royal families. Grace was famous actress before getting married to Prince Rainier Grimaldi and Diana was a commoner, but a descended from King Charles II. After getting married, they both had children and supported special interests. Grace and Diana have another thing in common: they both tragically died in car crashes. Both of these lovely ladies are gone, but I still love reading about them.

Now, hopefully Kate Middleton doesn't have an ending like them. I hope Prince William and her marriage will be different. She is not as young as Grace and Diana. She is older and hopefully mature enough to handle everything thrown her way. I think Kate is elegant, lovely and her fashion sense is wonderful. I'm looking forward to all of their wedding planning. The dress, the ring and of course the wedding.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Books read in 2010

Daddy's Girl, Lisa Scottoline

Sworn to Protect, DiAnn Mills

Devil's Corner, Lisa Scottoline

Look Again, Lisa Scottoline

Moment of Truth, Lisa Scottoline

Courting Trouble, Lisa Scottoline

Decision Points, George W. Bush

Pursuit of Justice, DiAnn Mills

Currently Reading: True Blue, David Baldacci

Up Next: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Steig Larsson

Monday, November 22, 2010

New Balance Girls on the Run of SE Michigan 5K

I didn't know what to think about this race heading into it. I signed up for it because I needed one last race of the season. Usually the Souper Run (the first Sunday in November) is my last race, but I thought I was going to miss it this year. The good news is that I made it back home very early that morning and decided to run it. So that made the New Balance Girls on the Run of SE Michigan my final race of 2010.

I signed up for the race because it was fairly close to my home and on a Sunday. The round trip was about 80 miles. That is the longest I've driven for a race, outside of a half marathon. This race was an non-competitive fun run. No times to take or slips to rip off your bib. Even though the race was non-competitive, I wanted to set a new PR (personal record).

Since the time wasn't being kept, it was hard to gage how fast I was going. I did wear a watch, but I never looked at it during the race. It was buried underneath my coat and glove. I thought I was doing good. I was near the front for the entire race.

Around mile 2, a guy caught up to me. We ran side-by-side for the rest of the race. I was thinking with less then a half mile to go, "will I have enough left to out kick him?" Unfortunately the answer was no. When we made the final turn leading up to the finish line, the distance between us grew. I couldn't find another gear. Once I crossed the finish line, I finally looked at my watch. My watch read: 25:01:84. I let out a loud, "YES!" and a worker asked me if I ran a good time. I replied I did. I know it wasn't official, but I finished 9th overall.

If I knew how close I was to going under 25 minutes for the first time, I would have tried harder to sprint to the end. Since I just barely missed it, it gives me something to work on over the winter. My running goals are to run a 7:30 mile (my high school best) and get under 25 minutes for a 5K. I hope to accomplish both of them in 2011.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Black, Red & Blue - Adrian, MI

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Great Lakes Cross Country Regional

Over the weekend, Oakland University in Rochester, MI hosted the NCAA Division I Great Lakes Cross Country Regional. The state of Michigan performed well in the women's 6K race.

Michigan State Spartans won the regional with a total of 90 points. MSU's Emily MacLeod was the overall winner finishing the race in 20:18.76. Her average mile time was 5:26. (MacLeod is wearing bib 352 in the photo to the left.)

University of Michigan Wolverines fared well in the regional also. U of M finished second with a team score of 96. Michigan's top runner was 9th place Danielle Tauro. Tauro finished the 6K race in 20:50.11. Her average mile time was 5:35. (Tauro is to the left of MacLeod in the above photo.)

Michigan State and Michigan will run next at the NCAA Cross Country Championships on November 22 in Terre Haute, IN at noon. I hope the race will once again be live on TV like last year. I can't wait to see this championship race. I really can't wait to see the NCAA West Regional champion Jordan Hasay of Oregon run. I've been following her career since she ran in the US Olympic Trails when she was in high school. She is just an awesome runner. The championship is going to be one exciting race.

The above photo is one I took at the Spartan Invitational on September 17 in East Lansing, MI.

Monday, November 15, 2010

Books read in 2010

I picked up George W. Bush's book, Decision Points, Saturday morning. I have to say it has been a great read so far. For me the book is a page turner and fast read. After this book, it is back to the fiction world. I have books about FBI agents, disappearances and vampires.

Daddy's Girl, Lisa Scottoline

Sworn to Protect, DiAnn Mills

Devil's Corner, Lisa Scottoline

Look Again, Lisa Scottoline

Moment of Truth, Lisa Scottoline

Courting Trouble, Lisa Scottoline

Currently Reading: Decision Points, George W. Bush

Up Next: Pursuit of Justice, DiAnn Mills

Friday, November 12, 2010

Random things

All week I have been looking forward to Saturday. My husband and I will be traveling to Toledo, Ohio to do some shopping and eat dinner. Lately my husband has been so busy with projects, we haven't been able to spend as much time together. I'm really forward to spending the evening with him.

I mentioned on my blog before that I wanted to run an out of state half marathon starting in 2012. If you are a regular reader, you know that I will be running Boston's Run to Remember Half Marathon on Memorial Day weekend 2011. My out of state half marathon goal for 2012 in the New York City Half Marathon. I would really love to run in New York. I started to register for the 2011 NYC Half Marathon, but didn't finish the application. I want to give it some time and I want to lower my half marathon time again before entering for 2012. Not everyone who applies for the race gets in. I hope when I do apply for 2012 that I will get in and I can say "I'm In!"

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Twice broken - Adrian, MI

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Books read in 2010

After watching Hardcover Mysteries on Investigation Discovery a couple of weeks ago, I've been hooked on Lisa Scottoline's books. Hardcover Mysteries is a true crime TV show that talks with popular novelists about a real life crime that helped inspire their crime fiction books. Scottoline hosted one of the shows and I liked her personality. I checked out six of her books two days later at the library. I have read four of her books since October 20 and love them. Scottoline's writing is wonderful and she can draw the reader into her stories. I recommend her books highly.

Daddy's Girl, Lisa Scottoline

Sworn to Protect, DiAnn Mills

Devil's Corner, Lisa Scottoline

Look Again, Lisa Scottoline

Currently Reading: Moment of Truth, Lisa Scottoline

Up Next: Courting Trouble, Lisa Scottoline

Tuesday, November 09, 2010

Kind words

Before and after the Souper Run Sunday, two different runners approached me and said a few words to me.

Before the race, a woman with her daughter said that I have been an inspiration to her. She was apart of the Couch to 5K running group that I gave a talk to during the summer. My story has inspired her to continue running.

After the race, a girl who I passed during the first two miles said that I was her inspiration during the race. Her goal was to catch me and pass me during the race. She fell a little short. She said that she was about 50 feet behind me for the entire race. I was happy to hear that from her. During races I do the same thing. I will pick out a runner ahead of me and work the entire race to catch that runner. I'm glad that I can help someone try to achieve their goals during a race or just running.

Monday, November 08, 2010

Souper Run 10K

I never thought I would have run this 10K Sunday. My husband and I were out of town and I expected to drive home Sunday morning. Our plans changed Saturday night. We hit the road around 11:30 p.m. We made it home finally after the time change.

I decided on the drive home that I would run in the Souper Run Sunday morning. I didn't care how tired I was, I was going to do it. After only four hours of sleep, I put on my running clothes, hit the ATM and registered for the race.

The race time temperature was very cold, hovering in the 30s. Only the windy conditions made it worse. When the race started, I thought my pace was very slow. I only realized it wasn't after I passed mile one and the time was called out. My time was 8:30 or something like that. I was surprised.

My goal for the race was to set a brand new personal record. My goal during the race was to catch and pass a woman about 100 meters ahead of me. I noticed her around the second or third mile. I passed three miles in 24 minutes, passed four miles in 33 minutes. During the third and fourth mile, the distance between the woman ahead of me was shrinking.

The last 1.5 miles were the worst of the race. The course took us up a slight incline and straight into a strong headwind. It was awful. I continued and kept gaining on the woman ahead of me. I passed the fifth mile in 42 or 43 minutes. After I passed the mile marker, I decided to pick up the pace. I don't know if I really picked it up or not. The wind made it so difficult. I continued getting closer to the woman in front of me.

I was so happy when with about a .10 of a mile to go, I passed the woman I was chasing for most of the race. Just to make sure she didn't try to pass me back, I started to sprint toward the finish. I was thrilled with my time and my race. I ran a great race on less then four hours of sleep. I finished the 10K in 53:33:61. I beat my 10K PR by 6:26. Besides having a great time, I finished third in my age division and brought home another medal.

My 2010 racing schedule will end on November 21. I can't believe how much I achieved this year. I dropped all of my PR's in the 5K, 10K and half marathon. I hope to continue that success in 2011 also.

Friday, November 05, 2010

World Run Day

Runners from all over are being asked to celebrate the wonderful sport of running Sunday, November 7. To celebrate World Run Day, runners are encouraged to run their own course alone or with a small group. Some participants are sending a donation to their favorite charity.

If you want to participate and receive an awesome World Run Day t-shirt, register here.

I will be running on World Run Day. Will you?

Thursday, November 04, 2010

Detroit Free Press Half Marathon

I posted some of these photos from the Detroit Free Press Half Marathon over on my dailymile page. I don't know why I forgot to add them to my blog.

Photo Credit: Runphotos.com

Wednesday, November 03, 2010

Books read in 2010

Daddy's Girl, Lisa Scottoline

Sworn to Protect, DiAnn Mills

Devil's Corner, Lisa Scottoline

Currently Reading: Look Again, Lisa Scottoline

Up Next: Moment of Truth, Lisa Scottoline

Tuesday, November 02, 2010

Sunset - Bellevue, MI

Monday, November 01, 2010

Half Marathons

I'm increasing the number of half marathons I run. I'm going from one a year to many. I already have five planned out for next year. The number of races could increase to seven. It just amazes me that I want to run that many. Only a few years ago, I said I would never run another half marathon. I'm glad I changed my mind. I love running that distance. It is just right.

I do plan on running half marathons on back-to-back weekends next year. It will be a test for me to see how fit I am and how much fun I can have while running. My goal for the half marathon is to go under two hours. If I don't get it, I'll keep trying. While I'm trying, I will be having the most fun of my life.

Half Marathon schedule 2011 - so far

Glass City Half Marathon - April 17 - Toledo, OH

Boston's Run to Remember Half Marathon - May 29 - Boston, MA

Dexter-Ann Arbor Half Marathon - June 5 - Dexter & Ann Arbor, MI

Detroit Free Press Half Marathon - October 16 - Detroit, MI

Great Turtle Half Marathon - October - Mackinac Island, MI