OK, so my new year's resolution was to start and keep a training log. I am pleased to report that I have stuck with it for
4 days IN.A.ROW. Which means I have surpassed my success rate of last year's resolution (to actually get up and blow-dry my hair, put together a decent outfit, and wear make-up everyday) which only lasted 3 days. Woo-hoo!
I'm using two logs, actually - an on-line log at
www.RunAhead.com and a paper log in my Franklin Planner. (Did I ever mention that I love my Franklin Planner? I do. If I ever lost it I'd probably just kill myself because I wouldn't have any friends and I wouldn't have anything to do).
I hopefully will post my workouts from RunAhead to my sidebar, but first I need Trimama, Taconite Boy or IronNick to come over and show me how. I'm not much of a directions-reader, which could explain why I haven't once used the Garmin 305 that I got for Christmas even though IronNick DID come over and set it up for me already...
In the pool today I decided to time myself for 1000 yards to set a starting point so I can figure out if I actually get faster this year. Not that I really care very much, but now I'm just curious. My three IM splits to date were 1:09, 1:08, and 1:10 -- the 1:10 being Florida a couple months ago and it was so rough out there that the beach was actually closed and one athlete sadly did drown. I am very consistent, and I think I am the same speed year in/ year out whether I train much or not. Anyway, I was right about 16 minutes. That's about a 1:36/100 yards. Which makes me wonder why I am so much slower in open water when I get to wear a wetsuit.
Anyway, when I was a kid I was a great little swimmer. I still have all my ribbons and trophies in a box in the basement. Going through them I discovered that at one race I did a 5:35 for a 500yd freestyle; and at the same meet won a silver medal with a 19:33.6 for a 1650yd freestyle. That was when I was 12. Now I'm 44 and things have slowed down a bit! When we moved from Texas to Connecticut that year I also saved a newspaper article in the sports section that announced my sister and me as the "Texas Tornados" who had just arrived and surprised the Connecticut swimming scene... ahhh... my glory days were peaked out by 7th grade.....
Tons of curves and angles and lots of cutting on the wetsaw outside (I'm in Minnesota - brrrrr). The tiles you see in the photo are sand colored, and even have tiny sparkles like real sand. Where you see the tape will be 1" mosaic tiles made from stained glass. That part will look like overlapping ribbons, kind of like a wave. The glass tiles are teal green/blue, light sea blue, and dark sea blue. I think's it's going to rock once we are finished. 
I also had to sew a school-spirit themed pillow to auction off at my kids' school fundraiser in April. The rampant lion and the fringe are belting leather, and the background is crushed velvet. I liked the contrast of dressy and casual in the fabrics I chose. I just need to finish cutting the fringed edges and it'll be ready to turn in tomorrow.
