Canes Win Series and Make History

So, I know this is a little dated, but the Carolina Hurricanes beat New Jersey Tuesday night to win the first round of Th Stanley Cup Playoffs. They accomplished this goal in historic fashion. They came from behind to win, and scored two goals with less than two minutes remaining in the game, the latest a team has ever come from behind to win a Game 7. The winning goal came with 31.7 seconds left in the game.

I don't know this information from watching the actual game. I was too chicken to watch. I went to Game 3 of the series (the Canes lost in OT), and it just tore up my tummy. I know, I'm weak. So, I didn't watch games 6 or 7 of this series - two must win games. It worked out. It seems that if I expect them to lose, they win. Usually, they do win in spectacular fashion. They won the Eastern Conference Championship in 2006 after I turned off the TV convinced the whole thing was over. Maybe I need to stop watching any deciding games...

I did watch the highlights of the game yesterday on the Internet. I was shaking by the end of the highlight show, I knew what was going to happen, but the spectacular saves and the amazing goals still got to me. Imagine if I had been watching the thing live!!

Good Things from the CSA

A few months ago, our neighbors asked us if we wanted to participate in a CSA with them. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. We pay a local farmer who in turn gives us the produce they grow. Our program runs from April 14 to September 29. Each Tuesday, we receive fresh from the farm produce. It is a little pricey, but the fresh fruits and veggies are worth it. I think if we bought the produce at the grocery store for the same period of time, we would probably come out ahead working with the CSA.

We have received two weeks of produce so far. We have enjoyed asparagus, spinach, a variety of difference lettuces, radishes, sweet potatoes, white potatoes, spring onions, strawberries, and radishes. Everything has been wonderful. My neighbors are picking up the goodies this week. I can't wait to get home tonight to see what we get!!

What a Day!!

I have had busy days before today, but this one was pretty packed.

I got up at about 6:40 on this fine Saturday morning. Bill was already gone as he was participating in a triathlon across town. I was up to run a 5K for the Brain Center at a local hospital. I ran this race last year as well. A friend of mine at work is good friends with a brain tumor survivor, so I was able to join her team for the second year in a row. It is such a pleasure to be able to support someone that means so much to a friend. It was a good race, but it was hilly. I wasn't expecting all of the hills, and I hadn't been on a run for over a week. It was also much hotter than I thought it would be (we are supposed to reach 90 degrees, and it is only April!) Still, I finished close to a PR and had a good time. But, there was little time to rest as I needed to continue the day.

This afternoon was our Junior League's Home Roam home tour. We were able to tour 5 different homes in the area to check out their decor. Each home also had food in it donated by a local restaurant. The first home I went to is about the be listed on the market, so their was a fact sheet in the kitchen. The house will go for an asking price of $2.75 Million. It was unbelievable!! There was a pool in the backyard, a home theater, a pool hall, and the teenager's room had it's own study, full bathroom, and walk in closet. It was absolutely gorgeous. That house alone was worth the price of the tour. Still, I made my way through them all in about 2 hours.

I had a little down time at home with my hubby and pups before I was off to volunteer at the APS of Durham's annual gala event. I was the group leader for this event. We were charged with registering the guests and setting up their credit cards for the silent and live auctions. We were slammed busy for an hour and a half, then had a little bit of downtime. It is such a pleasure to work with a great organization like the APS. I really love working with people who care about animals. They were all so wonderful, and I have to give extra credit to the Junior League ladies who were there. Several of them also worked the Home Roam, so they had long days, too. All were professional and just great to work with. We helped out for about 3 1/2 hours when it was finally time to call it a night.

Now, I am home and will probably turn in soon. Between the home tour and the gala, I did get some wonderful news. My order for the Honda Element was completed. The car has been assigned to be and I should be getting it soon. I am so excited that I will have a brand new vehicle. The Mustang was turned over to its new owner yesterday, so I am in a rental car for now. I will be glad to have my own car. I hope it arrives soon!!

Sold!

We posted an ad in the paper and online. We listed it on Craig's List. And, now it's gone. My car sold yesterday.

Bill met with the buyers on Sunday to look at the car. They liked what they saw, but were going to look at one other car before making a decision. The decided to take my car yesterday. We didn't get full price, but we did get a really good price. My car will be gone on Friday.

So, now I need a new car. We are trying to order a new Honda, and are waiting to hear if the sale will go through. Until then, it looks like it will be rental car time for me.

I am a little sad that my Mustang will be gone. It is a good car, and I do enjoy driving it. I know it is not practical, and I know an SUV will be so much better for my family. I am excited about getting a new car, but I will be sad on Friday. Guess I will have to gun it one last time on the way to the drop off point.

A Busy Spring Weekend

This weekend is the first of two packed weekends.

Yesterday was so lovely, we just had to be outside. So, we decided to go for a bike ride to go get some lunch. It was a short ride, but so nice to be outside. I wished we had more time to ride, but I needed to get home to go to yoga workshop.

I participated in a 2 hour yoga workshop specifically geared for runners. It was a great time - much more informal than an actual class. We learned 5 different routines, and were able to practice as well as get any help we needed. It was a great add on to my normal weekly classes.

Last night, we went to a performance of modern dance pieces. A friend of ours choreographed a piece with dance and a photo presentation that she and her husband did. I don't know much about modern dance, but I did like her piece. I will admit that I did not get or like the first piece of the show, but luckily the remainder of the 4 total dances were good.

Today, I am at home with the pups. Hubby went to Virginia International Raceway for races with a friend, and I am home for most of the day. I will be attending the Carolina Hurricanes playoff game tonight with my friend who scored us some tickets. I am hopeful that the Canes will do well tonight after their great victory in New Jersey Friday night. There is nothing like playoff hockey, so it should be a fun night. GO CANES!!

It will be a busy week leading to another busy weekend, but I shall leave that for my next post.

Big Fat Check

We finally got our taxes done on Sunday. There is nothing like procrastination!! I wish we hadn't waited until almost the last minute. The man owes us money. Yes, we will be getting big fat checks from Federal and State. I can't wait to to get our money back. Now, we just need to decide how to spend it...

Big Auto Changes

We put my car, a 2005 Ford Mustang, on sale this weekend. As much as I like the car, it is time for me to get something bigger. I need a vehicle that I can use to carry my two furry girls, and you just can't do that in a 2 door Mustang.



I think the car is well priced. I hope it will sell quickly. My next vehicle will be a Honda, but we have not picked a specific model. It will be an Element, a CR-V, or a Pilot. Input, anyone?

Canes Win Again!

My very last season ticket hockey games was a blowout. The Carolina Hurricanes beat the NY Islanders 9-0. Yep, that's not a typo. I have never seen the Canes score that many goals. The best I can remember is an 8-2 win in the playoffs back in 2002. It was a sad game, though. The Isle were so utterly defeated. They just could not get going, then it got to the point where they just didn't seem to even want to get anything going. The Canes out shot them 57-12.

It was the 12th straight home win for the Canes. I believe it was the 7th win overall. Cam Ward became the winningest goalie in the Canes regular season history with 39 wins. Overall, it was a great way to end my season. The Canes will be going to the playoffs.

I am now thinking about ending my career as a fan. I think it is time to retire from season ticket holding. As much as I like hockey, I am no longer as interested as I once was. It costs a lot of money and it takes time. I think I will enjoy the Canes from newspapers and TV, at least for the time being.

Quote of the Day 4/6/09

"You were made to soar, to crash
to earth, then to rise and soar again.” - Alfred Wainwright

My First Duathlon

This morning, Bill and I participated in the Carrboro Classic Duathlon. What is a duathlon, you ask? It is a race that follows the sequence run, bike, run. we chose to do the super sprint race, so our course was a 2.4 mile run, a 12 mile bike, and a 1.2 mile run. It was a brand new experience for me, but a second duathlon for Bill.


It was a gorgeous day for a race. It was a bit cold this morning, but the sun was shining bright. I ran the first part of the race in a light wind breaker, but quickly warmed. The route was pleasant, with a slight downhill at the beginning and mostly flat for the rest of the course. I decided to go ahead and run the 2/1 intervals for this part of the race, so I would not tire myself. It worked quite well, and I finished running an average pace of 12.01 min/mile.

I was through transition quickly on on my bike. The road race took place on the rolling roads (that's a nice way to say hilly!) of Carrboro. We were away from the highway and on nice country roads. We passed many a cow pasture, horse fields, and even a chicken coop right by the roadside. Combine the bucolic scenery with the gorgeous day, and it was a nice ride. Of course, I was alone for a good part of the road race. At about mile 8, I began to realize that I could easily be hit by a car and carried away to never be seen again. While I knew that was highly unlikely, I also feared blowing a tire and being stranded in the middle of nowhere. Luckily, that did not happen, and I safely returned to the transition area after 55 minutes, 17.75 seconds.

I was at the hardest part of the race - the transition from bike to run. I hopped off the bike onto very wobbly legs. I ran as fast as I could to put up my bike, running into Bill (not literally) who had already finished the race (he was very happy with his run, but feels he needs to improve on the bike). I just decided to keep moving. It worked. My legs were killing me, but I just kept going and stopped for only one walk break. I finished the 2nd run in 16:53.

I felt great at the finish. It turned out to be a great race and so much fun. The food afterward was out of this world, too. I really, really enjoyed my first du, and both Bill and I are already planning to sign up for next year's race.

Busy week!

I had a rather busy week this week. There were two rather interesting events that I would like to share.

On Tuesday, we had our book club meeting. The interesting thing about this meeting was that we had the author of our book present at the meeting. That was something that has never happened before. The author, Dr. Paul Austin, is a doctor in a local ER. He wrote a book called Something for the Pain about life inside the ER and its affects on life outside the ER. It was an easy read and a pretty good one. It was equally interesting to hear from the author himself. He even read a section of the book for us. It must be so difficult to be an ER doctor. You are the first person a patient sees, but your function is to diagnose and more them through to the next doctor or to home. So many cases have unknown endings. There is also the long hours of shift work. It truly takes a toll on the family when Dad sometimes works overnight and must sleep when you are awake and active. We were very luck to have this experience for our club.

The second big event was Kids in the Kitchen with the Junior League on Thursday night. Once each year, we do a program to educate local kids about making good, healthy choices in the kitchen. This year, we were able to do an evening program at a local elementary school. I was there to volunteer, and I am so glad I did. The kids and their parents arrived at the school at 6:00pm for a two hour program. The kids and parents were given box dinners from Jason's Deli an ate while they heard a presentation from a nutritionist. They then had an interactive session with a PE teacher who talked about the importance of exercise. There was also a drawing for healthy prizes such as basketballs and soccer balls. After the program, the groups rotate through three different rooms. The first room had a local chef from a 4 star restaurant preparing a healthy treat for the kids (a bread and veggie salad - trust me, it was delicious!) The second room was the Herb Garden. Each kids got to plant seeds and take with them a plant that would be either basil or tomatoes. The final room were healthy treat stations where kids made edible jewelry (stringing carrot chips and snap peas on wire), a healthy trail mix, and fruit soda (fruit juice plus a bit of seltzer water). Each child even got a goody bag as they left filled with a T-shirt, a healthy snack, cookbooks, and other goodies. It was a wonderful event and so much fun to help. I was pretty darn proud of our League and my committee for such a great event.

This week will be busy, too - racing tomorrow, hockey, and a committee meeting. Guess I will have another good post soon!!

I just signed up for my first marathon

Oh my goodness!! I just signed up for my first marathon. It will be the Philadelphia Marathon on November 22, 2009. I am excited, nervous, and feeling a little insane right now.

I have been thinking that I should try to run one marathon in my lifetime. I really like the half marathon distance. It is a challenging distance, but it is not too difficult to complete and recover. I am very tired when I complete one, but it is a good tired. I often wonder after I finish 13.1 miles if I could go that distance again. I guess I will find out.

I think this race will be a good fit. I was born just outside of Philly, so it is a town that I love. The run will take up past trendy shopping areas, historic buildings, and the river. It should be a nice route. It is also very late in the season, so it will give me the most time to train. I am sure with the Galloway program, I will be ready for the run. I will have actually already ran 26 miles in training before I get to Philly, so I will know what I am getting ready to do.

Oh my, oh my. I can't believe I am really going to do it!