Hoffman - Jackson, MI

Spring breeze

After weeks of having spring sports games canceled due to the nasty weather. There was a change. The weather was nice and I finally photographed a game.

It was sunny, but a bit chilly at the college softball game yesterday afternoon. I wore a sweater and my winter coat to keep me warm while I worked. When I got out of my car, it didn't seem like there was any wind so I decided to leave my hat in the car. Big mistake.

I stood beside the home team's dugout on the first base side. There was a nice swirling wind that was hitting me in the face. Too bad I didn't feel that wind when I stepped out of my car. I regretted not bringing my hat. I had plenty of time to go back to the car before the game, but I didn't. I didn't want to lose my spot by the dugout. To pass the time before the game, I turned around to look at the crowd sitting in the bleachers. Some of the people sitting in the stands were just wearing short sleeve t-shirts and shorts. It was sunny but not that warm. It was only in the low 40s. Just looking at them made me colder in my sweater and winter coat.

It is sunny again today and warmer. I wonder when I photograph another college softball game later this afternoon will fans be wearing short sleeve shirts and shorts because it is close to 50 degrees? That isn't what I will be wearing to the game. You'll find me in a long sleeve shirt, winter coat and of course my hat.

Mausoleum door handle - Jackson, MI

Mournful - Jackson, MI

Registration

I'm so excited.

I just registered for the Detroit Free Press/Flagstar Half Marathon. I will be running across bridges, underwater and in Canada on October 19, 2008. That will be many firsts for me because I have never run underwater or been to Canada.

Besides training for the half marathon, the only thing left to do is book my hotel room. Which I hope to be doing soon.

**Update** I booked my hotel room this afternoon. My husband and I will be staying overnight at the Detorit Marriott at the Renaissance Center. Now everything is taken care of.

Miles run in 2008

I wanted to run 9 miles on Sunday, but I fell short. I finished with 7 miles. My reason for falling short was side cramps. Other then the side cramps, it was a nice run. I finished the week with 23 miles.

On Saturday, April 12, it is my first race of the year. I will be running the Acres of Fun 5K in Tecumseh, MI. Compared to what I have been running recently, it should be an easy 3.1 miles. I hope the weather is nice.

2004: 74.1
2005: 105.1
2006: 125
2007: 119.4
2008: 255.5

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin
John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne
Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn
The Lost Life of Eva Braun, Angela Lambert
Harlow: An Intimate Biography, Irving Shulman
His Way, Kitty Kelley
Natalie, Lana Wood
Rita Hayworth, John Kobal
The Fatal Friendship: Marie Antoinette, Count Fersen and the Flight to Varennes, Stanley Loomis
The Other Boleyn Girl, Philippa Gregory

Currently Reading: Atonement, Ian McEwan
Up Next:

Random things

I hope last night's snow was it for the season. Early Thursday the local weatherman was talking about 6 inches of snow. Thankfully the area only received 2 or 3 inches. My husband was very nice this morning to shovel the snow on the deck, around my car and clean off my car. After work, I had to shovel the sidewalks. The snow was wet, heavy and my back and hands hurt when I was completed. I could have just waited a couple of hours, maybe the sun would have melted the snow.

The registration opens Monday for the Detroit Free Press/Flagstar Marathon. I will be online after work registering for the half marathon. I don't think I have ever been this excited to register for a race.

This week every game I was scheduled to go was postponed or canceled due to snow. I hope next week the weather will cooperate so I can actually photograph some spring sports. Monday it is supposed to be over 60 degrees but there is a chance of rain. All I can say is I hope the rain stays away so some college games can be played.

Last year I was considering running a half marathon. The problem was I didn't have enough time to train for one. This year I will be running the Detroit Free Press/Flagstar Half Marathon, as I mentioned above. I found another half marathon close to my home during the summer and I really wanted to run that. The problem was I couldn't because I was booked for a wedding. I had booked two couples on consecutive weekends in August. In December, one of the couples canceled their wedding. I just realized today that I'm not booked for a wedding on the day of the half marathon. I'm booked for a wedding the week before the race. I will be running this half marathon in late August. Wow. I'm running two half marathons this year. Awesome.

Close up - Jackosn, MI

Missing fingers - Jackson, MI

Inclement weather

The snow storm from last weekend is screwing things up. The spring sports season has started in the county, but the weather isn't playing along.

I was supposed to photograph a softball game today and tomorrow, but those have been postponed. The softball diamonds are hidden under layers of snow. Other sports have postponed as well like lacrosse and soccer. Usually those two sports play in anything. I guess not this time.

Tomorrow it is supposed to be sunny. The key words here are "supposed to". I hope it is sunny so the snow melts. The spring sports season needs to get underway because I need the hours.

Mary, Full of Grace - Jackson, MI

Saturday's run

I knew that I wouldn't have the time to run on Easter Sunday, so I ran Saturday.

I only got in three runs during the week. That disappointed me. I usually like to run four times between Monday and Friday and once on the weekends, but my quad pain sidelined me on Friday. Instead of running, I spent time with my husband, resting and icing my quad. I felt guilty missing my Friday run.

Saturday I was determined to run at least 7 miles to make up for the lost day. If I ran 7 miles that would put me at 20 miles run for the week. After missing Friday, I didn't want to finish the week with anything thing lower then 20 miles.

Once I started running, I kept thinking about running longer. After the first two miles my quad felt fine and it made my decision easier. I decided I was going to run 9 miles. The first two times I attempted 9 miles, I failed. The first time my legs were really tired, poor excuse, and the second time my left quad was in pain and I really had to stop short. With the TV on the Duke/West Virgina basketball game, the run went by rather quickly. It took me 93:08 to run 9 miles. After the run, I was really happy. That was the longest I have ever run. With that run, my week's mileage was at 22 miles.

The whole run felt really good. I didn't have any quad pain, which helped the run go smoothly. I hope this weekend I can log another 9 miles pain free.

Resurrected - Jackson, MI

Books read in 2008

With me being sick most of this week, I really didn't get a chance to read. Over my vacation last week, I finished a long Marie Antoinette book. When I finished that book I didn't realize The Diana Chronicles by Tina Brown had a two week due date. That book is still considered "new" at my library even though in was released June 2007. I got as far as page 170 and I had to return it Friday to the library. It couldn't be renewed because the book is in demand. Or so the card said in the front of the book. Next time I go to the library, I will probably check it back out and continue reading it. But for now I'm reading a book that I bought: The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory.

I thinking of buying Atonement by Ian McEwan. Has anyone read it? Is it good? I would like to read the book before seeing the movie. The movie is currently in my Netflix queue.

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin
John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne
Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn
The Lost Life of Eva Braun, Angela Lambert
Harlow: An Intimate Biography, Irving Shulman
His Way, Kitty Kelley
Natalie, Lana Wood
Rita Hayworth, John Kobal
The Fatal Friendship: Marie Antoinette, Count Fersen and the Flight to Varennes, Stanley Loomis

Currently Reading: The Other Boleyn Girl, Philippa Gregory

Good Friday - Jackson, MI

Random things

Today is the first day of spring. Right now it is sunny and 44 degrees. Tomorrow winter will return to the area. The forecast calls for 4 to 7 inches of snow starting Friday night and ending Saturday morning. This winter I noticed a pattern, it seemed like after all of the snow had melted from one storm another storm came by and dumped more snow. I will not be looking forward to shoveling the sidewalks Saturday morning.

My three mile run was terrible today. My legs were tired. They felt like they weighed a ton and my left quad hurt again. I don't know why I had such a horrible run. Yesterday my 6 mile run went well and I actually ran without quad pain. During the run I kept waiting for the pain to start, but it never did.

The cold I have right now is starting to get better. After two days, I starting to regain my sense of smell but my ears are still plugged. I've been using tissues so much that my nose is very raw and has cracked and bled. When I'm using tissues, it feels like sandpaper. Very painful.

I'm one of the few people that didn't fill out a bracket for the men's NCAA basketball tournament pool in my office. To enter the office pool it required money. I need to hold on to my money as much as possible. I did fill out a bracket, but not for the pool. My fake bracket is hanging on my bulletin board in my office. Mine is just for fun.

I went to a high school this afternoon to photograph sports teams. I asked all of the spring sports athletes to write their first and last names on a piece of paper and hold it in front of them while I took a head shot. After I take the picture the kids always ask me what they need to do with the piece of paper that they wrote their name on. I always tell them to throw it away. After I finished with the boys and girls track teams, I looked at the floor of the gym and it is littered with paper. I grabbed all of the paper around me and put it in a pile because there wasn't a trash can around. I told one of the coaches that the kids threw the paper on the floor. She grabbed a trash can, picked up all of the paper and said to me that they would be running extra today for all of the garbage that they left. At every school that I photograph head shots at, paper ends up on the floor. Why are they so lazy?

A Top Chef Season One marathon was on Bravo TV yesterday. I spent most of the afternoon on the couch watching it. I could have watched more of it if I didn't have to go to work for a couple of hours. I think I could watch an entire 13 episode run without leaving the couch. I have no shame. I love that show.

Green face - Jackson, MI

Handles - Jackson, MI

Ladybug eye - Tecumseh, MI

The nose knows

Not a good weekend. On the last day of my vacation I caught a cold from my husband.

Two restless nights. Constantly battling a stuffy nose and trying to breathe. To help, I've been opening my mouth to breathe. Now I have the worst chapped lips. I can't sleep normally. I have to prop my pillows against the headboard and sleep with my head up. Last night that wasn't working too well, so I tried to sleep sitting up. It is something that I wouldn't suggest. It wasn't comfortable.

My stuffed nose has gotten worst today. I have been taking medicine but it doesn't seem to help. I probably have used almost a box of tissues in the last two days. And you can tell. I have the red irritation marks under my nose.

I should stop complaining. Many others have had it worst then me. Besides this is only the second cold I have had all winter. I'll keep taking my medicine and hope that it will be gone soon.

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin
John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne
Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn
The Lost Life of Eva Braun, Angela Lambert
Harlow: An Intimate Biography, Irving Shulman
His Way, Kitty Kelley
Natalie, Lana Wood
Rita Hayworth, John Kobal
The Fatal Friendship: Marie Antoinette, Count Fersen and the Flight to Varennes, Stanley Loomis

Currently Reading: The Diana Chronicles, Tina Brown
Up Next: Deciding between two books

Pray - Tecumseh, MI

So much to do, so little time

Friday was my last paid day of vacation. I have today and Sunday off but Monday it is back to work. BOO!!

This is what I accomplished on my last day of vacation:

-woke up around 8 am
-watched 3 movies
-ran 4 miles
-played with the dogs
-watched half of the Ohio/Bowling Green women's basketball game
-watched the Duke/Georgia Tech men's basketball game
-read 100+ pages in my book
-watched TV with my husband who came home for his break
-went to bed around 11 pm

I wish I could get paid for doing this everyday.

Miles run in 2008

My six mile run yesterday put me over 200 miles run for the year. I'm so excited that I accomplished that so early in the year.

On another note, I finally bought new shoes as well. I came home with Mizuno Wave Rider 11 shoes. I tried to break them in when I got home. The first mile was a bit uncomfortable. After that they felt fine. My left quad still hurt a bit when running. But I'm hoping the pain will go away because I finally bought new shoes. I have been running with the old pair of Mizuno's since last July. Yeah, not good.

Aren't my new shoes pretty?

2004: 55.6

2005: 84.1

2006: 102

2007: 96

2008: 203.5

Standing alone -Tecumseh, MI

Not locked - Tecumseh, MI

Cemetery Drive

With my vacation this week, it has given me time to get back outside with my camera. The weather has been great, high 30s/low 40s with sun. Sun! With the sun out it makes the perfect opportunity to go out and photograph at my favorite places: cemeteries.

Yesterday morning, I traveled to Tecumseh to visit Brookside Cemetery. It is one of my favorites in the county. It has a nice mausoleum and plenty of statues, which is a big draw for me. I have photographed that cemetery many times before. When I go back to ones which I have been before, I try to find new angles to photograph everything. With snow covering the ground, it limited my options some. I did get down and get my knees wet.

While at the cemetery I had my iPod with me. I did start singing, but not too loud. I was not trying to draw attention to myself with walkers and actual visitors in the cemetery. I thought it was OK to sing. But who knows there could be some cemetery etiquette that I don't know about.

I drove to Woodland Cemetery in Jackson County this morning. It was a cemetery I haven't been to before, but I have been in the area numerous times before. It was a huge cemetery. Plenty of things to look at and photograph. I found many mausoleums and statues. It was like I hit the jackpot! I was so excited.

I came upon a old mausoleum from 1897. Around the mausoleum there were signs saying " Warning. Dangerous Building". At first I didn't understand why the signs said that. Then I noticed all of the cracks and the crumbling foundation. I tried not to get too close, but I had to. There were two angels in front of it. I had to get close for my angel statues. The mausoleum had wonderful design and it was old and beautiful. When I walked closer I noticed some graffiti on the wall of the mausoleum. Some girl named Laura scratched her name on the front of the mausoleum and told everyone that she was there. I'm sure if any of the family is still living they would appreciate that fact. I guess no one taught this Laura girl to respect the dead. Vandalizing a cemetery must be her idea of a fun time.

Before leaving I drove up another path that I missed the first time around. I jammed on the brakes of my car. I saw before me a huge 10 foot bronze statue. The statue has been there since I believe the turn of the century, it was all green and awesome. The statue had great features; eyes, hair and hands. I was happy to have found it. I was focusing my camera on the face and I noticed someone scratched whiskers on the face. It saddened me that someone would climb up on this statue to draw whiskers on both side of the face. Another example of stupid people. I spent about 10 minutes on this statue alone. It was so beautiful.

I ended up taking over 100 photos at this cemetery. It was a great find and I hope to visit it again. Hopefully later today, I will get another chance to take photographs in a cemetery down in Toledo, Ohio. My husband and I are going to drive down there tonight to look for home improvement items. If the sun is still in the sky, we will be stopping for a while.

Brookside hinge - Tecumseh, MI

Thinking - Tecumseh, MI

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin
John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne
Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn
The Lost Life of Eva Braun, Angela Lambert
Harlow: An Intimate Biography, Irving Shulman
His Way, Kitty Kelley
Natalie, Lana Wood
Rita Hayworth, John Kobal

Currently Reading: The Fatal Friendship: Marie Antoinette, Count Fersen and the Flight to Varennes, Stanley Loomis
Up Next: The Diana Chronicles, Tina Brown

Pain in the head

After waking up from a nap yesterday, I had intentions of running six miles. That is where those intentions stopped.

As soon as I got up from the couch, the room was spinning because I was so dizzy. Only two seconds ago I was fine on the couch. I continued walking to the bathroom and everything was still spinning and my head was hurting.

After I came out of the bathroom I went to pick up my running shoes and I instantly felt like I had to throw up. I went and sat on the couch and breathed in and out slowly so I wouldn't hurl on the carpet. I did that a couple times and felt better. I leaned over and picked up my right shoe. Mistake. The room started spinning again. I managed to put on my left shoe and got down on the floor to stretch. Sitting on the floor didn't help me too much. I only did a couple of stretches and then I got up said to my husband "I feel like I'm going to throw up" and walked fast to the bathroom. I did what I said I was going to do.

I felt a little better afterwords. I decided that I could walk instead of run. Walking is still exercise and I needed to do something. I walked a fast paced mile on the treadmill. I pressed stop to see how I was feeling. I was feeling better, so I decided to run. I reset the treadmill and ran 3 miles. I thought 4 miles total for the day was good for me not feeling well with the throwing up, dizziness and still my left quad pain.

It wasn't the 6 miles that I wanted but I with those 4 miles, I'm only 9.5 miles away from 200 miles run for the year. I will make that easily this week.

Random things

Not much is going on today. Here are a few odds and ends.

Will winter never end? The county I live in is under a winter storm watch until Saturday night. The storm that is coming this way could drop 6 or more inches of snow. Great. I'll just shovel that additional 6 inches of snow on top of the 5 inches we received Wednesday morning.

Its official. I had my vacation slip signed by my boss today. My vacation can begin tomorrow when I leave work at 10 am. I checked the 10 day forecast on weather.com and it said that next week it is supposed to be partly cloudy and in the high 30s/upper 40s. That will be nice for when I'm outside taking photographs.

My half marathon training has been going well. I completed a run of 6 miles today and tomorrow I will be running 6 miles again. It seems when I have a run longer then 7 miles, I hit the wall. I think to myself, how am I going to finish 13.1 miles? I know I will get past it and just do it when the time comes. But running with quad pain isn't fun. I hope when I buy new shoes soon, the pain will go away. If it doesn't I might have to visit the doctor.

After this weekend, I will be less then 10 miles away from 200 miles run for the year. That is pretty awesome for me. I will be at 200 miles in just over 3 months. If I keep this running schedule up, I will totally smash my New Years resolution of 600 miles run for the year.

Vacation time

I filled out my vacation sheet this morning. All that is left is for my boss to sign it. I have my substitutes set up with their schedule for next week and everything is squared away.

Next week I won't be waking up to an alarm clock. I'll be sleeping in. Things I have on the agenda are reading, running, napping, staying up past 9 pm, going on photography trips, playing with the dogs, and spending time with my husband. That is a lot to accomplish on my week off. I'm sure they will be done.

People were asking me where I was going on vacation. My answer: My house. My last vacation was over 8 months ago, which was too long ago. This vacation is mainly to take a break and get ready for the spring sports season. The good news is that I have three more weeks of vacation left this year. And believe me, I will use all of it. One of the three weeks of vacation I have left, I will be taking a trip back to New York City with my husband. The last time we were in NYC was May 2002. It will be nice to get back there and see how the city has changed.

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin
John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne
Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn
The Lost Life of Eva Braun, Angela Lambert
Harlow: An Intimate Biography, Irving Shulman
His Way, Kitty Kelley
Natalie, Lana Wood

Currently Reading: Rita Hayworth, John Kobal
Up Next: Library trip

Old man winter

The branches on the trees do not look like this today. Maybe later this afternoon and tonight they will. My area of Michigan is supposed to receive four to six inches of snow. Four to six inches of snow? How can we get that? Monday it was 50 degrees.

I heard that this winter has dumped the most snow on us in seven to eight years. Last year we hardly got any. Most people in town wore coats and t-shirts outside because it was that warm.

Like most people I'm looking forward to spring. I can't wait until my first run outside with the sun on my face. Unlike a couple of weeks ago, it wasn't sun on my face, it was snow flurries, wind and tears.

Books read in 2008

I swear it has taken me ten years to finish His Way by Kitty Kelley. Actually it took about a week and a half. It seems like every time I was reading before a game, someone would interrupt and start talking to me. There is a reason why I wear my iPod earphones while reading.


A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin
John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne
Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn
The Lost Life of Eva Braun, Angela Lambert
Harlow: An Intimate Biography, Irving Shulman
His Way, Kitty Kelley

Currently Reading:u Natalie, Lana Wood
Up Next: Rita Hayworth, John Kobal

Tagged

I've been tagged by Badgergirl. Now, I'm supposed to share seven random and/or weird facts about me on my blog.

1. I haven't had any cavities yet and I'm 28. (knock on wood)

2. I've haven't broken any bones. (knock on wood)

3. Both of my ankles are extremely weak due to playing basketball in high school. I can twist both of them easily. I also have tendinitis in my left wrist.

4. I was a pallbearer at my grandmother's funeral yesterday along with my two brothers, two of my sisters and my husband. My grandmother was 100 years old. She graduated high school in 1924.

5. I like to watch classic movies. Most of my favorite actors are from the Old Hollywood era. My husband doesn't like to watch classics with me. He says they don't make sense.

6. I love to read books about funeral homes and cemeteries. Most people think I'm really weird when it comes to this. My dream photo assignment would be to document a deceased person at a funeral home from beginning to end. The whole funeral home business and death fascinates me. I liked this topic before ever watching Six Feet Under or Family Plots.

7. I can't stand it when people crack their knuckles. It grosses me out.

I tag anyone who hasn't done this.

Pain in the leg

Before I even step on the treadmill or walk outside to hit the road running, I have in mind how far I want to run. I will try to always meet that goal. If I don't, there has to be a good reason for stopping because I hate cutting my planned runs short.

According to my half marathon training, which I follow very closely, I was to run 6 miles yesterday. I got on the treadmill and started running. Within the first few seconds my left quad was in pain. I decided to stop thinking about it and continue running. But that thought didn't stay forgotten for too long, my quad hurt for most of the run. I think I looked down at the time every 30 seconds hoping the miles would fly by. They didn't.

After passing the 2 mile mark, I said to myself, I can go to 3 miles and see how I feel. If it didn't get any better I was going to stop. Then the guilt would have quickly followed. Getting to the third mile time dragged and dragged. I thought it was never going to end. Once I reached 3 miles I thought to myself, only three more 10 minute segments. When I thought that, it really broke the miles up nicely. Sure, I continued to constantly look at the timer on the treadmill, but it made those final three miles a little bit better.

I'm glad that I didn't stop. If I did, I would have made up the miles that I skipped yesterday in today's run.

Miles run in 2008

Even with an extremely busy work day of 10.5 hours, I managed to squeeze in a hour nap and a three mile run. My upper left quad has been hurting since Valentine's Day, but the pain seems to decrease in the middle of a run. I've tried stretching it every way I know, it doesn't seem to help. After work this evening, my quad isn't in pain like it has been. Which is a good sign.

2004: 44.9
2005: 67
2006: 76
2007: 74
2008: 157.5

Jealous eyes

Our dogs have plenty of chew toys. When one of them has a toy, the other dog will steal it or at least try to. This morning was the case with my dogs Blitzkrieg and Kelly.

Top Photo: Kelly chewing on a bone.

Bottom Photo: Blitzkrieg wants the bone that Kelly is chewing. He watched her from his bed and didn't attempt to take Kelly's bone this time. If he did, she would have bit his foot.

Hair dryer

My hair dryer stopped unexpectedly while my hair was still dripping wet. I turned off the hair dryer and looked at the instructions attached to the cord. The instructions said to turn it off and unplug it for five minutes to let it cool down.

I tried to dry my long hair more with my towel. It only helped a little. Still waiting for the five minute cool down time, I decided to get dressed and try the hair dryer when I came back downstairs. I grabbed my clothes and headed upstairs to my bedroom to get dressed. I turned on the space heater in my bedroom to full power. I bent my head down to dry my hair. It’s not a good way to dry one's hair, but it did dry it very slowly.

After getting dressed, I went back downstairs into the bathroom to check on the hair dryer. I turned it on. It didn't work. The hair dryer is officially dead. So much for the five minute cool down.

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin
John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne
Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn
The Lost Life of Eva Braun, Angela Lambert
Harlow: An Intimate Biography, Irving Shulman

Currently Reading: His Way, Kitty Kelley
Up Next: Natalie, Lana Wood

Cold running

Not even five minutes into my 6 mile run yesterday, the treadmill belt stopped rolling. I got off the treadmill and found the tools to tighten the belt. I did that and it didn't work. I thought about just going back upstairs and sitting on the couch. I didn't. A huge thing of guilt fell over me and I had to do it. I changed and went running outside.

I really didn't want to run outside, but I had no choice with my beloved treadmill not operational. When I started the run, I wasn't even sure how far I wanted to go. It was very cold and windy. I went for a just over 3 mile run.

Besides the cold, I'm not a fan of running outside during the winter. My run was slowed due to the fact that the sidewalks were glazed over with ice. To get around the ice without falling on my butt, I had to go around in the grass. Usually running in the grass is no big deal, but when the ground is frozen and not flat, it is. I twist my ankles very easy and I had to go extra slow in the grass.

Other fun tidbits on my run, I noticed a van backing out of a driveway. Problem was the woman driver didn't notice me. I had to stop before she ran me over. I was standing at her driver's side door and not once did she ever see me. Who knows if she even saw me when I ran around the front of her van. A couple of blocks away, I saw something huge on the side of the road. I thought it was trash. No it was a frozen dead cat. As I ran by, I looked down at the dead cat and said "Poor Kitty." I hate running by dead things in the road.

With snot and tears running down my face, tears due to the wind and flurries, I finished my run in one piece. My time was very slow for that distance. I was so disappointed that I didn't run my scheduled 6 miles, I still felt guilty.

Later that evening my husband made an appointment to get the treadmill fixed. The repairman came by this morning and was actually able to fix it without ordering parts. After he left, I changed my clothes and ran 6 miles. It was so nice to run inside my home with heat and a TV to keep me entertained.

Marilyn

I love Marilyn Monroe. I have many of her movies and own and read so many books about her. I can never get enough of her.

On my gift list is the book Marilyn Monroe: The Complete Last Sitting by Bert Stern. I have wanted this book for over 5 years. But I never bought it because the list price is $120. The Last Sitting photos were taken six weeks before she died.

This morning while reading my usual five newspapers on the internet, I come across the story of Lindsay Lohan recreating "The Last Sitting" with Bert Stern. Stern was the same photographer who photographed Marilyn's last sitting. Stern got Lohan in the exact same poses and duplicated the original set as Marilyn.

I thought the photos turned out well. Stern did a wonderful job of recreating the magic he had with Marilyn.

Photo Credit: Bert Stern/Associated Press

Snow fence - Adrian, MI

Random things

Usually when I run on my treadmill, I watch Food Network. I always turn it to that channel because it gives me something good to watch while I'm running. Wednesday, Food Network was on while running 6 miles. For the last three miles, Barefoot Contessa had a clip show dedicated to chocolate recipes. I couldn't handle it. Seeing all of that chocolate made me hungry. All I kept thinking about was the Crunch ice cream bar that was in my freezer. I almost stopped running several times. But I stayed on the treadmill and finished. Once I was finished with my 6 mile run I ate the Crunch bar.

My husband and I celebrated Valentine's Day, a day early on Wednesday. I was cold before entering the restaurant, so when we were seated I kept my coat, scarf and knit hat on. Our waiter comes over to our table and says, "Gentlemen, do you know what you would like to drink?" I looked up at the waiter and said, "Gentlemen?" He said, "I'm sorry, I thought you were a man because of the hat you're wearing. It says 'Go Blue' and it’s a Michigan hat." After the waiter took our drink orders, I said to my husband, "Girls can't wear Michigan hats?" My husband said, "He's probably in the back saying to myself 'There goes my tip'." The waiter was actually very good and to make up for his goof, he walked to the bar twice during dinner to give me an update of the score for the Duke/Maryland basketball game.

At work this morning, the internet was down for most of my shift. It’s hard to get your work completed when the internet doesn't work. Every day I load photos onto a web site so people can view galleries and buy any photos they want. I tried all morning to load three folders. None of them would load. One started to load and the pop up box said it would take about two minutes. A couple of minutes later the pop up box changed to 153 hours. I canceled the photo upload. Twenty minutes before I left work, I successfully loaded one folder. Normally it would have taken less than five minutes, with the internet problems it took over 20 minutes. I didn't want to leave work without loading the other two folders, so I burned a CD and brought the photos home. I loaded them from my computer quickly.

In Snow - Adrian, MI

Night

It snowed again yesterday. Most of the basketball games for the evening were canceled. Mine was not.

I got to the school and walked into the gym, the junior varsity team is just warming up. The visiting school arrived shortly before me and the players were getting dressed. The game started a half hour late. The game didn't go fast due to plenty of fouls and injuries.

Before the end of the JV game, the varsity visiting team arrived and they went to get dressed. After the JV game was over to kill time the announcer was reading off names of the school staff for high school teacher appreciation day. All of the players nominated their favorite teacher for something and then wrote why the teacher is so special. How sweet. It was driving me up the wall. After the teacher thing, the home team was standing around. Hello? Run onto the court and start warm-ups! The varsity game didn't start for another half hour. GRRRRR!

When I finished at the office, I really wanted to just get ready for bed. The dogs wanted their food, so they had to be fed. After eating, they wanted to go outside. I opened the door for them. Once the dogs were back inside and I finished getting ready for bed, I sat at my computer. Reading blogs didn't help me get to sleep any time soon. About 9:45 pm, I decided to go to bed.

Once I was in bed, I couldn't go to sleep. I tossed and turned probably for 45 minutes. When I finally was asleep, I was awakened by someone outside shoveling their sidewalk around 11 pm. I understand it stopped snowing but who shovels at 11 pm?

Later around 2 or 3 am, I heard the sound of a vehicle in the driveway. The dogs heard it too and started barking. The person in the vehicle kept driving up and down the driveway for a couple of minutes. I was thankful when they left and the dogs stopped barking. I could try to get back to sleep, what little time I had left before I had to get up, which wasn't long.

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin
John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne
Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn
The Lost Life of Eva Braun, Angela Lambert

Currently Reading: Harlow: An Intimate Biography, Irving Shulman
Up Next: His Way, Kitty Kelley

Weekend Update

Over the weekend, I watched three classic movies:
Gaslight (1944) - Charles Boyer, Ingrid Bergman & Joseph Cotten
The Country Girl (1954) - Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly & William Holden
Lolita (1962) - James Mason, Shelley Winters, Sue Lyon & Peter Sellers

All three were great movies and recommend them. In Gaslight and The Country Girl, Ingrid Bergman and Grace Kelly won Oscars for their roles. I thought they were both fantastic and deserved the Oscar. In the movie, Lolita, I couldn't believe James Mason's character. He did everything he could to get close to Lolita, even marrying her widowed mother that he really didn't love. But I guess a pedophile will do anything to get what they want. I haven't read the book, but the ending really surprised me. I never thought Lolita was in love with Peter Sellers' character. He's character annoyed me so I was happy when Mason's character shot and killed him. I hope I didn't spoil it for anyone.

I'm beginning to really love Turner Classic Movie channel (TCM). I prefer older movies to movies that recently came out. I guess I'm a sucker for Old Hollywood.

If anyone out there watches Project Runway, you know that they had their show Friday during Fashion Week in New York. The final runway shows won't be seen until March, but Sparklies has galleries to all of the designers. My favorite two designers are Christian and Chris. I like Christian's high fashion looks and Chris' vintage look - flapper, goth & maybe Old Hollywood.

I planned to run 8 miles yesterday on my treadmill. That didn't happen. Around mile 4, I took a drink of Gatorade. About a mile later, I got horrible stomach cramps. I didn't think I would even make it to mile 6. But I did. I stopped at 6 miles instead of running 8. It really disappointed me but I didn't think it was such a good idea to continue. Besides the stomach cramps I had other problems. For the last week my upper back has hurt and my right knee was giving me trouble. Those two miles that I didn't do, I will make up this week. I will probably add them on to the schedule runs that I will be doing.

What's up with this weather? I didn't go outside at all yesterday even though the sidewalk needed to shoveled. The wind chill was -20 degrees and the wind was horrible. This morning I didn't want to go outside to my car it was only -1 degrees. I prepared for the cold by wearing double socks, running tights under my pants, cold gear shirt, sweater, scarf, coat, hat and double gloves. Today the high is supposed to be 12 degrees. BRRRR!

Miles run in 2008

I love my half-marathon training. Following the schedule, I have run 5 days a week this year. I haven't run 5 days a week since high school track. It feels good to be running that much again. But this time around it is really wearing me out. I have been very tired recently, but that could also be from work. Today my training calls for a 3 mile run then on Sunday a big 8 mile run. During that run, the TV will be my best friend. It will distract me from looking at the treadmill display.

2004: 36.4
2005: 49
2006: 47
2007: 42
2008: 101

Above - Adrian, MI

Chain link fence with snow - Adrian, MI

Books read in 2008

I read four books in less then a week. I think that is a new record for me.

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin
John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne
Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn

Currently Reading: The Lost Life of Eva Braun, Angela Lambert
Up Next: Library trip

Songs typically not heard over the loudspeakers

Songs that played back to back on my iPod last night while photographing a boys basketball game at a Christian school:

Asshole by Denis Leary
Closer by Nine Inch Nails

After listening and signing along with both songs, I thought it was funny that songs with a ton of swears and that would never be heard at a Christian school played right after one another. What would have made it perfect is if A Special Christmas Box or aka Dick in a Box by Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg would have played after Nine Inch Nails.

Drops of Jupiter - Adrian, MI

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin
John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne

Currently Reading: Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn
Up Next: The Lost Life of Eva Braun, Angela Lambert

Random things

When my game for Friday evening was canceled, it gave me a chance to stay home and read. And read I did. I finished the books True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess by Wendy Leigh and Final Disclosure by David W. Belin. Saturday afternoon, I started my third book for the weekend, John Wayne: My Life with the Duke by Pilar Wayne. The book is a fast read and I hope to finish it later today or even tomorrow.

Staying true to my half-marathon schedule, I ran 8 miles yesterday morning. That was the hardest thing I have ever done. It took so much out of me. During the course of the run I stopped twice and walked for less than a minute. During my breaks, I guzzled water and Gatorade. I think I drank too much and it made my run worst. I was so happy when the treadmill said I was done. Hopefully this Sunday's 8 mile run will go better.

This week I will cross over 100 miles run for the year. It will feel so good to accomplish that milestone so early in February. Usually I don't reach 100 miles until March.

I can't believe Lent starts Wednesday. It is so early. This year I will be giving up the vending machine at work. I gave it up last year and didn't miss it. I have been really good about bringing breakfast with me to work every day. Recently I have been making visits to the vending machine. When I make the visits that means we're out of food and my husband and I have to go grocery shopping.

Mark the grave - Adrian, MI

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Final Disclosure, David W. Belin

Currently Reading: John Wayne: My Life with the Duke, Pilar Wayne
Up Next: Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow, David Stenn

Something good has come out of it

Snow. I had to go into work early because of the snow storm. I arrived at work at 4:30 am and stayed until 10 am.

Every school in the county was closed today. I think that they feared the worst. When I left work, I think there was about 4 inches on the ground. The streets were very drivable, of course if you went slow enough. The county is under a heavy snow warning until 7 pm tonight. The accumulation of snow in the area is supposed to be around 4 to 7 inches, which isn't too bad.

When I got home, I received a phone call from the sports editor. The game I was supposed to cover tonight has been canceled. CANCELED! That means I can finish reading my Grace Kelly book tonight, run on my treadmill without rushing around to get ready for my game and eat dinner at a normal time, not after 9 pm.

That's not cool

I finished reading Marilyn Monroe: The Biography by Donald Spoto yesterday afternoon. The book was very good. I think it is the best Monroe biography I have read so far and recommend it to anyone who loves Marilyn.

But I did have one problem with the book. In the last chapter of the book, the last page was missing. Someone cut the page out of the book. I guess whoever did it really needed that page. So I don't know how the book ends and that makes me angry. I spend a week reading it and I don't have closure. No ending. Just cut off in mid sentence. That is not the way a library book is supposed to be.

When I returned the book today, I said to the librarian that they should be aware of something in the book. The librarian replied, "A dirty passage?" I said no. I told her the last page of the last chapter was missing and showed her how someone cut it out of the book. It would be nice if they could copy the page and place it in the book for others to enjoy.

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto

Currently Reading: True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh
Up Next: Final Disclosure, David W. Belin

Locked in

Aftering feeding the dogs this morning, I put on my scarf, hat, gloves and zipped up my coat. I gathered books that needed to be returned to the library, my camera and camera bag and headed outside. It was very cold and windy. I wanted to get to my car as fast as possible. The problem was I couldn't.

One of the latches on the gate was frozen. While holding my books, camera and keys, I tried to get the gate latch open several times. It just wouldn't move. After a couple of minutes I gave up and walked back into the house. To actually get to my car I had to go through my house, out of the front door and down the driveway.

I pressed unlock on my key fab and grabbed the handle on the passenger side door. Nothing. The door was frozen. I tried again. But no luck. I had to put down my books, camera and camera bag and use my body to open the door. I hit the door with my hips and butt a couple of times, the door finally opened. After scraping the windows on my car, I tried to open the driver's side door. It was frozen like the passenger side. This side was easier. It only required two taps with my hips to open.

Right now the temperature outside is 9 degrees, with the wind chill -10 degrees. Who knows how cold it was this morning when I was leaving for work. I have one question: how long until spring?

Marked - Adrian, MI

Windowpane - Adrian, MI

Random things

Before heading to dinner Saturday evening, my husband and I stopped at Best Buy off of Airport Road. While pulling into the lot we noticed a Chipotle Mexican Grill. While vacationing in Chicago a couple of years ago, we ate at one and fell in love with it. This morning while on their website I saw that Toledo has four Chipotle's. Why I'm I just finding this out? I told my husband next time we go down to Toledo, we will be eating at Chipotle.

Sunday morning at 2 am, my dogs woke my up by barking. Once they stopped barking, I could hear people talking outside. I put on my glasses and opened the curtain. In our neighbor's driveway was a suspect down on the ground getting handcuffed by several officers. In the morning when I went out on the porch to get the paper, I noticed two of our outdoor lights by our sidewalk were knocked over. I could tell by the footprints in the snow, the suspect running away from the cops tripped over the lights and broke one. Silly criminal, I hope you liked your ride to jail.

Jurassic Park

Driving back from Toledo Saturday evening, the song Walk the Dinosaur by Was was playing on the radio.

Me: "Wouldn't be neat to see dinosaurs in a zoo?"

Husband: "Wasn't there a movie based on that entire premise?"

Random things

This morning at work, I couldn't get warm. Along with wearing a turtleneck sweater and jeans, I also had on a cold gear shirt, running tights, scarf, hat and my winter coat. It still didn't help. I blame it on the permanent draft inside the building. Or it could be that the temperature is only 6 degrees with a wind chill of -9 degrees.

Next week it is going to be a heat wave: 30 degree temperatures! I really need to get outside and take some photographs. I have totally been slacking on that. If you noticed, I have been posting photos from my trip to Washington, D.C. from 2004.

This week has really been bitterly cold. At every game I've been at this week, people or should I say teenagers in the stands have been wearing shorts. Its the dead of winter with temperatures in the teens or below, shorts is the first thing I think of when I get dressed to go to work.

This weekend my husband and I are going down to Toledo, Ohio to do some shopping. I'm really looking forward to eating at Don Pablo's. YUM!

Unawakened - Adrian, MI

Horses - Washington, D.C.

Sounds too familiar.....

August 5, 1962: Marilyn Monroe, 36, was found naked and dead in bed at her Brentwood, California home by her housekeeper. Her death was caused by an overdose of sleeping pills.

January 22, 2008: Heath Ledger, 28, was found naked and dead at the foot of his bed in his SoHo Apartment by his housekeeper. His death was apparently from a drug overdose.

When I first read the story about Heath's death yesterday, I instantly thought of how similar it was to Marilyn Monroe's death. They both were found naked and dead in their bedrooms by their housekeepers. Marilyn's death was caused by an overdose and it looks like Heath's death was as well.

Its too bad because he had such talent as an actor. Both Heath and Marilyn were too young to die.

Wreath in hand - Washington, D.C.

Miles run in 2008

Wow. This is the fastest that I have ever reached 50 miles. I owe it all to my half-marathon training schedule that I have been following since the beginning of the year. I ran my longest run ever Sunday evening. Seven miles. My previous long run before that was 6.7 miles. This weekend I will be repeating another 7 mile run. I have another week to go before I bump up my long run to 8 miles.

2004: 22.2
2005: 28
2006: 27
2007: 30
2008: 52

Cross and roses - Adrian, MI

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder: November 22, 1963, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney

Currently Reading: Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto
Up Next: True Grace: The Life and Times of an American Princess, Wendy Leigh

Knocked over - Adrian, MI

What a difference the sun makes

As I was waiting for my husband to exit a home improvement store, a vehicle pulled in and parked in a spot a row ahead of me. A teenage son and his mother got out of the vehicle. The son and mother decided it was such a nice day that they didn't need winter coats, their long sleeve shirts would be sufficient. The temperature was 27 degrees. With the wind chill factored in, it was only 14 degrees with 18 mph winds.

The mother was carrying a special fashion accessory: a fanny pack. She put it around her waist as they were entering the store. Fanny packs, that is so 1990.

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder, Mark Fuhrman
Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot

Currently Reading: Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney
Up Next: Marilyn Monroe: The Biography, Donald Spoto

Red Heart - Adrian, MI

shuffle

I've mentioned before that I received an iPod for Christmas. For the last two weeks at work, the iPod has been my close companion. Before I sit down at my desk for the morning, I put my earphones in and turn on the power. Listening to different music for five hours makes the mornings go quickly. It is so much better then the random CDs I used to bring in.

Besides listening to it at the office, I've been listening to my iPod during photo assignments at sporting events. I can't believe what a difference it makes. With my music, I don't really pay attention to the crowd anyone. I miss all of the yelling and complaining from the stands. And that alone is pretty nice.

Now that I've had this great gift for a couple of weeks, I noticed how quickly the battery dies. Monday night I charged it after my game. At work this morning, the battery died. As I type it sits in its dock recharging. The other thing I noticed is the lack of shuffle. For the past two days after a couple of hours the same songs I heard already were playing again, and in the same order. I have over 100 songs uploaded and I don't think I heard 30 of them yet. I saw on the directions that songs can be reshuffled. Maybe I will try that later tonight at my game.

Besides those two minor things, I love my iPod shuffle. I don't think that I will go back to bringing CDs into work ever again.

So true

I wasn't scared of them growing up. I just thought they weren't funny. Now a researcher says they are "universally disliked by children."

Just wondering

I recently downloaded songs from one of my favorite movies, Rocky IV, onto my iPod. When I hear the songs play is it sad that I can picture the music montages in my head?

Door hinge - Adrian, MI

What? Not another birthday.

Friday evening and Saturday night, my husband and I ate at two different restaurants. The first restaurant had three birthdays during the time we were there. The servers would gather, clap, sing and give a free dessert to the birthday person. The second night, the entire time we were at the restaurant there was five or six birthday's. These servers would gather and say Ye-Haw! Could there really be that many people in the same towns in the same restaurants celebrating their birthday on the exact day?

While talking with our server on Friday, I asked if she believed all of the people she sang to if it was their birthday. She said no. I said you should check IDs. She said it would be better if it was a milestone birthday. I think it would be better if restaurants just stop signing, clapping and embarrassing people on their birthday. Just hand them a dessert and say Happy Birthday. The whole restaurant doesn't need to know about it because nobody cares if it is Jimmy's 14th birthday, especially when he isn't a family member.

Ivy & Bricks - Adrian, MI

Treetop - Adrian, MI

Random things

Not much as been going on with me. Just working like everyone else. Here are the highlights from the week:

Last Saturday was my first time as an altar server. The man I was serving with asked me if I was nervous. I wasn't. I got to carry candles, a bucket of holy water for the priest and the bread. I had fun and I was told by the priest and a couple other altar servers that I did a great job. This Saturday, I will be an altar server again.

I have been running since the beginning of the year. Even though the half-marathon is in October, I wanted to get a jump start on the training. I downloaded a half-marathon training schedule and have been following it. So far so good. Ask me how I'm doing when I have a scheduled run of 10 miles. That might be a different story.

Besides running, I have been reading and watching DVD's received at Christmas. The first book I read this year took me a day. The second book is taking longer, its been almost a week. I always read one book super fast then drag on the second book. The DVD's I have been watching is the series of Six Feet Under. Granted I received them on Christmas 2006 and started to watch them now. I needed a break from the series because a couple weeks before Christmas 2006, I watched the entire series through Netflix. Is is just me or others as well? When I watch DVD's of television shows I always have to start from the beginning. Six Feet Under had five seasons, there is no way that I would pull Season 3 and start from there. I have been watching SFU for a week, right now I'm on Season 4.

I received an ipod for Christmas. This week my husband showed me how to use it. I loaded some songs Monday and Tuesday. Today I went to add songs but ended up deleting them. I had to upload close to 100 songs again. Not fun.

I love my ipod. I can take it everywhere with me. At work I love it because I can walk away from my computer freely. Before I had an ipod I would take CD's in and plug in headphones into my computer tower. When I needed to get up and go somewhere I would always have to stop the CD and take off my headphones. Now I can just get up. Also, I took my ipod with me to a basketball game last night. Listening to music while photographing made the game made it go faster. Now it will always be with me at games.

I downloaded The Dance by Garth Brooks for my ipod. I know the song is about a loss of life. When I hear the song, I think of my dad. The day he died, my mom, brother and sisters were talking with him in our kitchen. We all had laughs and it was a great conversation. Who would of knew that about eight hours later he would be gone forever?

The Dance

Looking back on the memory of

The dance we shared 'neath the stars above

For a moment all the world was right

How could I have known that you'd ever say goodbye

And now I'm glad I didn't know

The way it all would end the way it all would go

Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain

But I'd of had to miss the dance

Holding you I held everything

For a moment wasn't I a king

But if I'd only known how the king would fall

Hey who's to say you know I might have changed it all

And now I'm glad I didn't know

The way it all would end the way it all would go

Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain

But I'd of had to miss the dance

Yes my life is better left to chance

I could have missed the pain but I'd of had to miss the dance

I'll be watching you - Adrian, MI

Eternal Slumber - Adrian, MI

Worn face - Adrian, MI

So I didn't

In my post The Ticket, I said that I would return to the cemetery this morning and take photos.

I didn't.

After work I filled up my car and decided that I would rather sit on the couch with a blanket and read. Right now the temperature is 26 degrees, with the wind chill its 16 degrees. It is warmer then yesterday but I wanted to stay inside today.

I checked weather.com and the forecast for Monday and Tuesday is supposed to be in the 50s. I think I will wait until next week to venture back to the cemetery.

Books read in 2008

A Simple Act of Murder, Mark Fuhrman

Currently Reading: Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, David Talbot
Up Next: Sons and Brothers: The Days of Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Richard D. Mahoney

Snow on statue - Adrian, MI

The ticket

After work this morning, I went to the library to pick out new books to read. I was in the library for about a half hour. I walked back to my car to find something on my windshield: a parking ticket.

I was a bit upset because I thought all of the parking in town was free. I was wrong. I managed to park one spot away from the free parking. I didn't pull up into the free spot because the car that was parked next to the open spot was crooked and over the line. I really didn't want that person to hit my car when they backed out so I stayed in my spot. The paid parking spot.

I called the number on the ticket to find out how much it was going to cost me. The lady on the end said it was $15. I didn't have the exact cash to put in the envelope so I wanted to wait until I returned home to see if my husband had change for a $20.

Still mad from the parking ticket, I didn't enjoy my time photographing my favorite cemetery in town. The photos that I took this afternoon weren't terribly exciting because the ticket took me out of it. Also, my dress shoes were getting wet from walking around in the 4-5 inches of snow.

I returned home, woke my husband up and told him that I received a parking ticket at the library. He told me to call the library and see if they validated parking tickets. I called the number and told the woman who answered the phone that I received a parking ticket while I was inside checking out books. She told me to bring the ticket down to the library, they would take care of it. It was so nice to return after lunch with my ticket and hand it over to the library staff. It really made my day and I decided to return to the cemetery Friday morning with boots.

Snow covered trees - Adrian, MI

Iron gate - Adrian, MI

New Year's Resolutions 2008

I'm a day late, but I don't think that matters. I want to continue with last year's resolutions because I thought that they were pretty good.

1. Run over 600 miles - In 2007 I ran 573.7 miles. I think that if I run 5 times a week and over 3 miles every time I will be able to achieve this goal. Another way to reach that goal is to start training for the Detroit Free Press Half Marathon that I will be running in October.

2. Eat more at home - My husband and I did a really good job of eating at home more last year. With eating at home, I know we saved more money then when we constantly went out to get food. My husband wants to try something different this year, actually sitting down at our table and eating. It would be a change then always eating in front of the television. They only time we ate at the table last year is when we hosted family dinner on holidays. I agreed with him and hope we sit down to dinner at the table.

3. Shoot photos more - This is one resolution from 2007. I think I did a pretty good job of getting out on my own time. But I need to get out more. I 'm hoping to photograph things that I love once a week. Tomorrow I don't have a game to photograph so I can use that free time to go out and shoot the things that I love and add them to my personal series: cemeteries, cemetery statues, decaying structures/industry, graffiti and ballet.

4. Read more books - I finished 2007 with 43 books read. I hope to read over 45.

Miles Run in 2007

I thought about skipping my run yesterday. I thought I really didn't need it. But later in the afternoon I decided to just do it. So I did. I ran three miles on the treadmill and loved every second of it. Today, I will get back on my treadmill and start the year of 2008 at zero miles and work my way from there.

I finished the year of 2007 with 573.7 miles run. I total kicked 2006's butt by 103.7 miles and it feels good.

Total miles run for the year:
2004: 318.6
2005: 350.8
2006: 470
2007: 573.7