tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84010412988546411222024-03-13T10:04:49.913-07:00Top 45 @ 45Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.comBlogger69125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-81894116897085437492013-01-13T13:34:00.004-08:002013-01-13T13:34:38.569-08:0045 RecapAs I write this post, it has been a little over a year since I started my journey to complete 45 activities to commemorate my 45th birthday. I gave myself 12 months to complete them all and I can report today, that I have checked off 44 of the 45. A few of the items I have only partially completed and I endeavor to finish those things very soon. When I was brainstorming the list, one of the requirements for being added to the list was that it wouldn't be life-threatening so skydiving would not be added to the list even after many people suggested it because it is on their own individual bucket list. The one thing I did not do last year was take a photography class and I have decided to make an executive decision to put skydiving on the list...the twist is that it will be at the indoor skydiving center being built near my home.<br />
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One thing I have learned about myself over this past year is that as I come to the end of a task, in my brain I feel like it is complete and then I am ready to move on. I am ready to move on to new goals for this year and be able to check this activity off. In my brain I was done, somewhat bored by the idea of actually finishing and I have come back to finish the recap and be able to say, "This is complete."<br />
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Here is a brief recap of the last items on the list that I did not blog about:<br />
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Chicken S*&t Bingo:<br />
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My friend, Amy, had suggested we go to <a href="http://www.ginnyslittlelonghorn.com/" target="_blank">Ginny's Little Longhorn Saloon</a> to witness a very old Austin event. I can't remember exactly why it came up and vaguely remember it was a combination of me owning chickens and The Help. After about 2 years of planning, some really hot Austin temperatures keeping us from going anytime during the summer months, we finally made it! We drank beer in the parking lot, ate chili dogs for free and bet on a chicken to poop on a number in a coop set up next to the very crowded bar. The entire affair lasted about an hour from start to finish and unfortunately, we didn't win. I did get some nice one-on-one time with Amy, so that was a score!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HIuATrA698Q/UPMjk94P37I/AAAAAAAAAZQ/GVHGjvNrDfk/s1600/AmyTeeChickenBingo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HIuATrA698Q/UPMjk94P37I/AAAAAAAAAZQ/GVHGjvNrDfk/s1600/AmyTeeChickenBingo.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Self Portrait in the parking lot with beer.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1mungHBTZP4/UPMj0thYEPI/AAAAAAAAAZY/ljwrAECJimk/s1600/IMG_0310.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1mungHBTZP4/UPMj0thYEPI/AAAAAAAAAZY/ljwrAECJimk/s1600/IMG_0310.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Miss Ginny!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Th8It_yXtUw/UPMkUcC8zBI/AAAAAAAAAZg/2zdHb1pgG_w/s1600/IMG_0313.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Th8It_yXtUw/UPMkUcC8zBI/AAAAAAAAAZg/2zdHb1pgG_w/s1600/IMG_0313.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And the fun begins!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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The Hobbit Feast:<br />
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I LOVE Alamo Drafthouse! Anytime I can get to one of their menu and movie events I do. Some of the memorable events along with food that I have been to are Charlie and the Chocolate Factory chocolate feast, Mother's Day Champagne Brunch with Breakfast at Tiffany's, and now The Hobbit Feast. I have often thought about going to The Lord of the Rings feast, but sitting at the movie theater for 12+ hours is just too overwhelming for me. Nicole, Andy and I went and thoroughly enjoyed the movie and the food. It is so fun going with Nicole and I really like the fact that she is adventurous with food. I know there are others out there like her, I just don't know many who would be exclaiming, "YUM!" to some of the food that came out.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J5cXQFJC3X0/UPMkpysw46I/AAAAAAAAAZo/ZYirzfl5kAg/s1600/HobbitFeast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J5cXQFJC3X0/UPMkpysw46I/AAAAAAAAAZo/ZYirzfl5kAg/s1600/HobbitFeast.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hobbit Menu</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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B Scene at the Blanton:<br />
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Alison and I adventured downtown to the monthly member happy hour with a Gatsby theme. We ran into some friends of mine, Curt and Annette, drank too many dirty martinis and learned to do the Charleston...well sort of learned to do the Charleston. The martinis made me a bit dizzy so I ended up in search of water and food to calm my stomach. Alison knew I had to take a break after I exclaimed, "I stepped on my own left foot!"<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c9zCdU0KW2w/UPMlxQ69BvI/AAAAAAAAAZ0/DMNoU5pNFc8/s1600/CurtAnnette.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c9zCdU0KW2w/UPMlxQ69BvI/AAAAAAAAAZ0/DMNoU5pNFc8/s1600/CurtAnnette.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Curt & Annette</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Carnival Magic - Western Caribbean Cruise:<br />
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I was able to wrap several events into this cruise. Yes, some of them were substitutes for original list items and in my opinion they are legitimate because several of them were first-time activities for me. Nicole and I had a wonderful trip, survived being disconnected from the internet for 7 days and were really able to relax. Nicole was a bit fearful of the stingray city and ended up loving it and even kissing a stingray! (supposed to bring 14 years of good luck). It was fabulous riding horses into the hills and then swimming in the ocean on the horses' backs. Finally, swimming and interacting with dolphins was a dream I have had for years, probably since I was around Nicole's age swimming with the Dayton Dolphins swim team when I was younger. It took me a few days to get my land legs back after the return. I was glad to be home and get back to work and in a routine.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-G-B1Qj6MeII/UPMnEbKC6sI/AAAAAAAAAaY/mOLz0C1thl8/s1600/CarnivalEntry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-G-B1Qj6MeII/UPMnEbKC6sI/AAAAAAAAAaY/mOLz0C1thl8/s1600/CarnivalEntry.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Carnival Entry</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vepbn9Fk7Ko/UPMnZ1zZaRI/AAAAAAAAAag/5u-3bZtGyhY/s1600/CarnivalBDayCard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vepbn9Fk7Ko/UPMnZ1zZaRI/AAAAAAAAAag/5u-3bZtGyhY/s1600/CarnivalBDayCard.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Carnival Birthday Card</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l07GeL26r-g/UPMnnmViIYI/AAAAAAAAAao/ORo_XbSfXiM/s1600/DiningCrew.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l07GeL26r-g/UPMnnmViIYI/AAAAAAAAAao/ORo_XbSfXiM/s1600/DiningCrew.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our Wait Staff: Pepito, Romeo and Randy.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KlDuSPSA3II/UPMn3f5xiPI/AAAAAAAAAaw/01B1_DQf-6Y/s1600/TeeNicPortrait.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KlDuSPSA3II/UPMn3f5xiPI/AAAAAAAAAaw/01B1_DQf-6Y/s1600/TeeNicPortrait.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Birthday Portrait</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<a href="http://firepitceramics.com/" target="_blank">FirePit Ceramics</a> - Pottery Throwing<br />
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Chris, my neighbor and friend, came with me to the ceramics class just before the holidays. We spent an hour and half playing with clay, creating pottery on wheels with several other people. I can see how this activity could become an addiction. It is not simple, but extremely fun to watch the change in the clay as you try to create items with your hands. We still have to return to glaze our pieces and will do so very soon...picture to come, maybe ; ).<br />
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Austin Symphony - Brahms<br />
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I recently went to the symphony with my friend, Greg, and his neighbors, Barbara and Ed Clark. The musical selections were from Brahms and Britten. The music brought me back to my college days when I would go the the UGL library to study. I would go to the music area where you could pick out a vinyl album, get some earphones and plug in to the music from a cubby to listen. I would choose some classic album and recall it was often Beethoven or Brahms because their music was perfect for listening to while studying. The routine was always the same, choose music, plug in earphones, fall asleep for several minutes in the beginning (often deep enough to wake up with drool on the desk) and then being able to listen and study for several hours. My biggest fear seeing the Austin Symphony live would be falling asleep and drooling in front of Greg's neighbors and luckily I can report that that did not happen. I really enjoyed the music and while I didn't love the Britten piece, I can report that is certainly was lively and felt like living through a rain storm. Last night confirms that I am still a fan of Brahms composing.<br />
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Indoor Skydiving - TBD<br />
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As I mentioned above, jumping out of plane won't happen but the indoor version looks extremely safe and really fun. As soon as they open, I will see who wants to go along and I can make the final check mark on my list and be on to new goals and endeavors.<br />
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Thanks to so many friends and family members who helped me meet all my goals this past year by participating, supporting and encouraging me to go for it. I know for sure I could not have even dreamed up this past year without knowing I would have so many people accompany and support me over the last 12 months.<br />
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Happy New Year!<br />
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<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-64077053698878376662012-12-01T11:52:00.000-08:002012-12-01T11:52:11.071-08:00Lenoir Restaurant - By Catch DinnerInstead of attending La Dolce Vita, that is an event that takes place at Laguna Gloria Art museum, Greg and I altered the list a bit to participate in one of the monthly dinner series meals featured at Lenoir Restaurant in south Austin. I decided that I didn't feel like standing in multiple lines for food and wine with thousands of other people. I have become quite spoiled and prefer smaller venues and more personal service for all kinds of events ranging from food and wine to music.<br />
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<a href="http://lenoirrestaurant.com/" target="_blank">Lenoir</a> is owned and operated by husband and wife, Todd Duplechan and Jessica Maher, who source as much as their supplies from Texas producers as possible. The restaurant is housed is a very quaint and whimsically decorated house-cum-restaurant just south of downtown. When we first arrived we were directed to the adorable backyard where ambient lights were strewn in the trees and the <a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/biscuitgrabbers" target="_blank">Biscuit Grabbers</a> entertained us with their unique jazzy music.<br />
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While listening to the tunes, we were offered a choice of beverages; bubbly, riesling or pilsner and tasty hors d'oeuvres; hake brandade, marinated blackfin tuna and fried menhaden. We both started with a glass of the pinot nero-fanconia scarpetta and ended up with a glass of the riesling. Of the hors d'oeuvres, one of our favorites was the fried menhaden that we renamed fish-bacon due to is presentation and the fact that it tasted like bacon with a hint of fish flavor as a nice after taste. Greg and I had to resist eating the tray of appetizers placed at the end of our table because we wanted to leave room for the meal to come...we should have stopped at one a piece of the appetizers instead of the 3+ of each that we ate, just couldn't resist the fish-bacon.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hake Brandade and Blackfin Tuna</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fish Bacon!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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After a short time in the backyard, we migrated inside for the four courses to come. Upon entry to the restaurant, we were greeted by the scene below. I LOVE the multiple chandeliers. The restaurant only has a few tables and seats probably about 30 or so people. Most of the walls are decorated by thin strips of wood that have been painted black except for a wall painted a beautiful jewel tone of blue near the restrooms. It was so cozy and inviting that I am looking forward to another visit very soon.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lovely Interior Decor</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Menu - a.k.a. Fish Feast</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
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The first course did not disappoint! I LOVED the two salads and in particular the salad with thai basil as the main greens paired with toasted rice, wild boar and egg crepe. The textures and flavors were amazing and I ate way more of this salad then I should have...I was failing miserably on pacing myself for the remainder of food to come. The cauliflower salad was lovely, too, with lots of additional flavors and textures.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amazing Thai Basil Salad</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Awesome multi-colored cauliflower salad</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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One of the really cool aspects of this meal is the intro to each course by the chef along with guest lectures by the fish monger, the sommelier and the local Austin sake maker. If only they would have told me to pace myself better...no thanks to Greg either. ; )</div>
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The second course was an amazing rainbow runner green curry. It had just enough spice to have some interest and not too much that you couldn't recognize and taste the other ingredients and spices in the soup. I am not a big fan of okra, but it grows well in Texas and this wasn't too slimy, but I really enjoyed the additional flavors of the Thai eggplant and Jerusalem artichokes.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">FlavorFULL green curry soup</td></tr>
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The third course, or last savory course, was an entire grilled porgy and yummy roasted sweet potatoes. The sight of the whole grilled fish made quite a presentation and while everything was served family style, Greg and I were the only ones at our table so we had a lot of fun taking pictures and dissecting the dishes. We were quite full by this course so we were able to bring some of the food home. I really liked the way the potatoes were roasted with some meyer lemon garnish because it had a bit of a lemony glaze on them. Oh, and the green beans were divine with a lovely mix of seasonings to complement the fact that they were perfectly prepared, not too over cooked. We loved most of the drink pairings although we were not a big fan of the sake. As I am not a sake connoisseur, I really do not feel qualified to comment too much on it though.</div>
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Finally, our fourth, dessert course, was a smorgasbord of sesame & almond cake, meyer lemon curd, grilled persimmon and frozen coconut rice. Of this grouping, my favorite flavors were the lemon curd and coconut ice cream probably because I was so full from everything else, I couldn't really put too much into my stomach for fear of bursting. As a matter of fact, I was so full that I forgot to snap a picture of the dessert.</div>
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The meal was a huge success in my book and as I suspected, I really enjoyed the intimate nature of the meal over the bustly chaos that sometimes prevails at something like La Dolce Vita or a different wine and food fest.</div>
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I have signed up for email updates from Lenoir because I hope to return very soon for another one of their special meals.</div>
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Next few posts:</div>
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Blanton B Scene</div>
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FirePit Ceramics</div>
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Chicken S*&t Bingo</div>
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Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-228379651187205122012-11-19T13:09:00.003-08:002012-11-19T13:09:40.718-08:00Final List UpdateHere is the final list. I need to set the date for item #16 and I think it will be December 2nd, if you want to come along, let me know! For the Art Class I have decided it would be a first to try to make some pottery so I am going to do that. I still need to post about the dinner at Lenoir the restaurant that was amazing and will do so very soon. Actually, if you see anything on the list that is remaining that you might want to tag along with me, shoot me an email.<br />
<strike> </strike> Hard to believe the year is almost up and it will be the end of this list. Someone asked me if I was going to have a list of 46 next year and I emphatically said, "NO!" Now that I have had some time to ponder, I may have a hobby that I attempt to do for 46 weeks, and that is the extent of next years list.<br />
<ol>
<li><strike>Get physical exercise 5-6 times a week for 45 weeks - Ongoing</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Austin 5k - Run for the Water</strike></li>
<li><strike> Danskin Triathlon - June</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Highland Lakes Challenge - October</strike></li>
<li>135/8 - Ongoing</li>
<li> <strike>Masters swimming meet/ 3x3 Challenge - TBD</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Diva Dash - April</strike></li>
<li><strike> Change Hair - January</strike></li>
<li> Passport Vacation - Caribbean Cruise</li>
<li> <strike>Trip to San Diego with Kim & Stacy and others – July/August</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Paragliding - August</strike></li>
<li> <strike> Surfing - August</strike></li>
<li> Swimming with Sting Rays - Grand Cayman</li>
<li> Horseback riding on the beach - Jamaica</li>
<li> Swim with dolphins - Cozumel</li>
<li> Chicken S*&t Bingo - December</li>
<li> <strike>Zip lining - March</strike></li>
<li> <strike> Make bed each weekday morning - Ongoing</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Plant garden/produce veggies and herbs - Spring</strike></li>
<li> <strike> Get an egg from hens - Spring</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Empty kitchen sink each weekday night - Ongoing</strike></li>
<li> <strike> Redecorate Nicole’s room for 10th birthday - June</strike></li>
<li> Blanton B Scene Art Party - November 30</li>
<li> <strike> AMOA Opening - Janauary</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Lenoir Special Seafood Dinner – November</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Opera – Lucia di Lammermoor – February</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Broadway Across America – Wicked – February</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Ballet – Fall</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Paramount Theater – Summer</strike></li>
<li> <strike>UT Football home game -Opening game vs. Wyoming</strike></li>
<li> Symphony - December </li>
<li> <strike>Texas Advocacy Project – Handbags for Hope became KW Red Day</strike></li>
<li> <strike> SXSW – Focus Movie – March</strike></li>
<li> The Hobbit Feast - December</li>
<li> <strike> One handwritten note a month to Nicole for book – Ongoing</strike></li>
<li> <strike>One handwritten note a month to a Friend or Family member - Ongoing</strike></li>
<li> Photography Class - December</li>
<li> Ceramic Art Class - December</li>
<li> <strike> Top 45 at 45 Blog – Ongoing</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Courage to Change Blog – Ongoing</strike></li>
<li> The Artist’s Way morning pages and art dates – Ongoing</li>
<li> <strike>iPhone Apple class – January</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Practice French – Ongoing</strike></li>
<li> <strike>Whole Foods or Central Market Cooking class became Le Cordon Bleu Class - TBD</strike></li>
<li> Organize Family Birthday Calendar - December</li>
</ol>
Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-63306400137975317172012-11-03T23:10:00.001-07:002012-11-03T23:10:10.715-07:00Daylight Savings In about an hour and a half, the clocks on the computers, phones, ipad and TVs will automatically reset and fall back 1 hour. I have already set the clocks, microwave and oven clocks back so when I wake up in the morning, I won't be alarmed by the difference in times. Computers however, are not full proof in knowing the correct dates to change times as was evidenced last weekend when Nicole and I took part in the <a href="http://www.gazellefoundation.com/runforthewater/" target="_blank">Run for the Water</a> race. As we headed downtown, some of the electronic signs had already adjusted to an earlier time announcing 5:30am instead of the actual 6:30am that we were at while driving on Barton Springs looking for parking to get to the starting line in time for my 7:15 5k kick off.<br />
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I am fairly certain that the organizers of the race thought that the clock would change that weekend too, when they decided to start the 10miler so darn early in the morning. Another explanation is that runners and organizers of runners here in Austin are just plumb crazy for setting a start time so early on a Sunday morning.<br />
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I know that Nicole was not too happy about getting up so early on a Sunday. I had to use the parental line of, "We are lucky to have the things we have, including clean water to drink each day, because some people have to wake up this early to walk to get clean water," to help Nicole adjust her attitude about the wake up call (things you never thought you would say to your kids type of line).<br />
The race was a good bit larger than I had expected and Keller Williams Realty is a big sponsor for the race. After meeting Gilbert Tuhabonye at one of KW Team Meetings, I decided to add this event to my list, substituting it for the Capitol Triathlon that I didn't do in September due to lack of training time. The formation of the <a href="http://www.gazellefoundation.com/about/" target="_blank">Gazelle Foundation</a> was inspired by the story of Gilbert who was a survivor of the Hutu/Tutsi civil unrest in Burundi. He wrote a book, This Voice in My Heart, that I intend on reading soon, and is an autobiographical account of his upbringing and tale of survival.<br />
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Right after signing up for the race, I posted on Facebook that I had signed up and invited some friends to join me. Allison and Maria eventually signed up to run with me and it was nice to have the support. Allison is currently training to run a marathon and has been logging quite a few miles each week in preparation and Maria is more like me, not quite as much running. When I asked Allison how fast she could run a mile, she pointed to her iPhone that was securely attached to her arm and said that it depended on the music that was playing. I knew that I wasn't going to be able to keep up with her when she said the first song to play would be Let's Get it Started AND that I had forgotten to even bring music to run to during the 5k. Maria remembered her music but was nice enough to hang with me throughout the race. Having her to talk to helped in two ways 1) I ran a bit faster than I have recently and 2) I actually ran the entire 5k nonstop.<br />
I finished the run in about 37 minutes, not my best time in a 5k and also not my worst. From the results, I was 24th in my age group. <br />
Nicole and Hadley were signed up to run the Kid K that started right around 9am. It was fun to see them lined up at the starting line and I was proud of both girls for participating for the cause of clean water. <br />
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I definitely want to send out a special thanks to Allison and Maria for running with me, and to their husbands, Dan and Matt, who came out to the race to watch Nicole and Hadley while we ran our race. We celebrated with breakfast at NXNW and then Nic and I came home and I didn't do much the rest of the day as I was still recovering from the 5k swim and then the 5k run complete within days of one another. <br />
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New list update to come this week.<br />
Time for bed..even though we set the clock back one hour, I don't need to push my luck.Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-17836781315275269912012-10-27T14:30:00.002-07:002012-10-27T14:30:20.907-07:00Highland Lakes ChallengeOn Thursday morning, I swam in the 6th Annual, Tex Roberston, <a href="http://www.highlandlakeschallenge.com/" target="_blank">Highland Lakes Challenge</a>. The annual event is organized by former Olympian, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandy_Neilson" target="_blank">Sandy Neilson-Bell</a>, and her husband, Dr. Keith Bell. Sandy was a triple gold medalist at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany in the 100 meter freestyle. She won three golds, one in the individual 100 free, one in the 4 x 100 free relay and one in the 4 x 100 meter medley relay. My masters swim coach, Carolyn, is a swimmer on Sandy's master team, the <a href="http://www.teamtexasmasters.com/" target="_blank">Team Texas Masters</a> and is basically responsible for getting me to put this event on my list for this year. She <strike>will pay for this</strike> inspired me and made me believe that I could accomplish this, so lots of credit to her for believing in my abilities to complete this even if I doubted it from time to time.<br />
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The Challenge consists of 5 stages of swimming in Lake Buchanan, Inks Lake, Lake LBJ, Lake Marble Falls and Lake Travis. Swimmers can swim in all five stages or just one stage, swimming distances ranging in length of 1 mile up to 4 miles depending on the course and the day. I chose to swim in the Inks Lake stage because it was the best day to fit into my schedule and as it turns out, it was the right choice because the weather turned cold overnight between Thursday and Friday. Originally, I was going to do a 1 mile swim, however there were only 4 other swimmers other than myself and they were all going to do the great distance. Since I didn't want to create any problems for the organizers (or disappoint Carolyn ; ) ), I opted to increase my distance from 1 mile to 3 miles.<br />
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This particular leg of the event began on the docks of <a href="http://www.camplonghorn.com/About" target="_blank">Camp Longhorn</a>, a summer camp that was started by Tex and Pat Robertson in 1939. Coincidentally, I had been to Camp Longhorn years before when I was a nanny for a family whose children attended camp over the summers there. It has grown significantly over the years and I got lost looking for the docks because it was so different from when I had been there before.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Overcast Pre-race sky</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Pre-race companion, Hank</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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It is fitting that the challenge is named after Tex Robertson as he is a former Olympian in Water Polo and former swimming coach for the University of Texas who is best known for inventing the flip turn and coaching Adolph Kiefer who was a world champion backstroker. Flip turns are only permitted during the freestyle and backstroke races while, in butterfly and breaststroke, regulations require swimmers to touch the end of the pool with both hands before turning back for another length. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tex's Olympic bag</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tex Pool Dedication</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tex Robertson's Medal Room</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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After meeting on the docks, we all climbed on a boat and Sandy drove us around a bend to begin the swim near a damn. The water was fairly cold upon entry but since I typically get pretty hot during practice at the Y, I knew the temperature was not going to be an issue once I started the 3 mile trek. We 'warmed' up a little before Sandy counted us down and we took off. I was a little concerned early on because my left arm and shoulder were uncomfortable pretty quickly so I started alternating between freestyle and breaststroke to give other muscles a chance to kick in. There was no choppiness for most of the swim and I am very grateful for that because the last time I did an open water swim, the small waves were hitting me to one side and I ended up getting really dizzy and nauseous that lasted most of the rest of the day after the swim. The only regret I can think of was that I wish I had goggles that were shaded like sunglasses because the glare from the sun made it difficult to site the course. Doing breaststroke did double duty, helping my muscles and helping me to site the course better. I held my place in the middle of the pack for the entire 3 miles occasionally spotting Keith and Patty pretty far ahead and Bill and Paul a slight distance behind. At one point, Sandy and Carolyn pulled up nearby in a boat to let me know I was pulling to the left and redirected me closer to shore. As I got closer to the finish, the recognizable Camp Longhorn buildings helped to calm me down a bit as I knew that once I could spot them, I was coming to the end of the challenge. The last 500-800 yards were pretty tough because the choppiness of the lake picked up considerably and luckily it was coming head-on instead of at an angle or to either side of my head. When I saw the final buoy, I had enough energy to kick to the end to reach the dock and pull slightly ahead of Bill, as Carolyn told me after I finished. <br />
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Carolyn said she felt like a proud momma for me and was impressed with my time. I really didn't have any idea how I had done other than the time of 1 hour and 41 minutes because I had nothing to compare it to having never done a distance like this. I was in the company of people who do this type of thing on a regular basis, Patty having just swam a 10 miler in Tennessee a couple of weekends ago for instance. I am proud of the time and the fact that I pushed myself to do the entire 3 miles instead of the 1 mile but I am still recovering, several days later, and will play it by ear on whether or not I will do this event again. <br />
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One final note, I was pretty surprised at how dirty my suit got, acting like a filter for the dirt floating around the top of the lake and was sure to take some Emergen-C to help prevent getting sick from the dirt and slime that I filtered through my nose while I raced.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dirt filtered through my suit</td></tr>
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Tomorrow, I am running in the Run for the Water event downtown and will report on that early next week as well as do a recap of what is left on the list and how I hope to accomplish the rest before December 31!<br />
<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-44778646776970829382012-10-22T08:52:00.002-07:002012-10-22T08:55:24.287-07:00The ShrewA few weeks ago, I went with my friend, Margaret, to see the Taming of the Shrew ballet that was put on by Ballet Austin at the Long Center. It was awesome!<br />
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Before the ballet, we decided to have dinner downtown at <a href="http://www.bessbistro.com/" target="_blank">Bess Bistro on Pecan</a>. For those of you who don't know, Sandra Bullock is one of the owners of Bess Bistro in addition to <a href="http://www.waltonsfancyandstaple.com/home.aspx" target="_blank">Walton's Fancy and Staple</a> that is across the street from Bess on the portion of 6th Street west of Congress. Pecan Street is another name for 6th street because, like many of the streets in Austin, any street that is <i>any</i> street in Austin, has more than one name. Just check out this list put together by one of the title companies I do business with below.<br />
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There were no Sandra Bullock sightings, however I have seen her there before. Margaret and I enjoyed a really lovely, relaxing dinner finally finding some time to catch up on each others happenings. We both had a fish dish and I ate everything on my plate because a) I was hungry and b) I couldn't take any of it home because we were heading to the ballet and there was no way I was leaving any of the yumminess on the plate! For dessert, we had their dessert du jour that had a Nutella-like flavor and was so light and the perfect thing to have after dinner with some decaf coffee.<br />
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Both of us were a little apprehensive about the idea of Taming of the Shrew, that is seemingly Shakespeare-dialogue dependent, turned into a ballet and we were both in for a surprise. The troupe was amazing! They did such a wonderful job translating their emotions into movement that you could tell who was playing which character from the start and their was no confusion which ballerina was the shrew. There were two lines spoken near the beginning of the ballet that honestly weren't needed, but it was fun to hear some spoken word at a ballet.<br />
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I really enjoyed the simplicity of the sets too, that through minor changes represented very well the various scenes in the ballet. Many of the extras spent time easily moving props on and off the stage and a few pieces of the furniture were made of a translucent material that I really liked. For some reason, the translucent furniture had a big impact on me because I think it served a really good purpose and yet it did not distract from the ballet.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1Nfs1cCboXE/UIVrWsnMdnI/AAAAAAAAAT4/JSg6UTTGzpA/s1600/shrew-267.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1Nfs1cCboXE/UIVrWsnMdnI/AAAAAAAAAT4/JSg6UTTGzpA/s400/shrew-267.jpg" width="400" /> </a></td><td style="text-align: center;"></td><td style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ballet Austin - Taming of the Shrew</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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I am winding down the year and will be doing on last list update this week. I need to motivate in these last 12 weeks of the year to finish up the last of the Top 45!Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-30230539992838593912012-09-17T19:43:00.004-07:002012-09-18T12:32:11.629-07:00Swimmin' in the RainOn the list, I had picked to do the Austin Tri Rocks triathlon and had to make a switch due to lack of training time. Without proper training, I am pretty concerned about injury. I substituted the <a href="http://amswimassoc.com/27.html" target="_blank">"World Championship of Texas 3 on 3 Swimming Tournament"</a> that took place this past Sunday. The tournament consists of a series of games where a team of three competes with another team of three in various races and a team is eliminated after two lost games. The pairs of competitors swim along other pairs of competitors in order to add a little bit of excitement and to prevent the tournament from lasting all day and night. The games were in the following order: Free relay, 50 fly, 50 back, 75 IM (no freestyle), 50 free, 50 breaststroke then IM relay (again, no freestyle). I was somewhat concerned the event would be canceled (and half hoping it would be, too) due to rain. For those of you who have been in Austin for longer than a month, you know we definitely welcome the rain. For those of you who know me, I get EXTREMELY anxious before any competitive event and I was semi-hoping it would start thundering...we only got rain, lots of rain, but nothing that would cancel the event. At least it was swimming in the rain and not running or riding a bike in the rain.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dJ7eD-OQKmw/UFfb3KewQeI/AAAAAAAAASI/U06KnSZRw98/s1600/Before3on3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dJ7eD-OQKmw/UFfb3KewQeI/AAAAAAAAASI/U06KnSZRw98/s400/Before3on3.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pre-Race (Carolyn MIA because she helped organize the event)</td></tr>
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My master's coach from the YMCA, Carolyn, organized two teams. The team I was on included our coach Carolyn, Courtney and myself and was named The Naughty Narwhals (our team at the Y is called the Narwhals) and the second team had Brian, Mitch and Christy called Sparkle Motion. Apparently, Sparkle Motion is from the movie Donnie Darko and when I searched the name on google, it came up in the Urban Dictionary defined as, "Phrase that can be used to describe something awesome," and "Originally from the movie Donnie Darko, where Sparkle Motion was the name of a dance group composed of little girls." I would say the first definition is more appropriate because Sparkle Motion at the tournament kicked some booty!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Har0dMkPDlA/UFfcfTMPZjI/AAAAAAAAASQ/iMnrq1t5dlo/s1600/NaughtyNarwhals.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Har0dMkPDlA/UFfcfTMPZjI/AAAAAAAAASQ/iMnrq1t5dlo/s400/NaughtyNarwhals.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtney, Carolyn & Me</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brian, Christy & Mitch</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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In our first 'game', Carolyn warned us that we were swimming against some pretty tough competition and we may end up 'bagging' the races to conserve our energy. Sure enough, one of the team members of our first opposing teams was apparently named one of the 10 fittest people in Austin. Yes, you read that correctly. In a city that has Lance Armstrong as one of the other top 10 people on that list, one of our first competitors is in his league. Needless to say, we didn't win any of those games in that heat. I came pretty close to winning the 50 free because I said to my competitor that it wasn't fair that they win all of them, but I still didn't win that race.<br />
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***UPDATE: I looked up our competition and sure enough, Kristen Turner was mentioned as half of one of the fittest couples in Austin in the <a href="http://www.austinfitmagazine.com/Fitness/Features/2011/February/austins-fittest-couples-2011.html" target="_blank">Austin Fit Magazine's February 2011 issue</a>. <br />We didn't have a chance....<br />
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Our second 'game' was not until the fourth heat which gave us a little bit of rest time. We swam against a set of tween girls and when I looked at them I decided it was probably a better bet that we could with this game. I swam the same events as the first time and we actually won. About half way through the game, I realized this meant we were going to have to swim again and we had no idea if we would get a break because of the nature of the tournament. I was a little bit worried that I had pushed a little too hard against our opponents AND it had really started to rain pretty hard. I know that we were wet already from the water, but it was pretty chilly and there was a breeze. We found it was better to stay in the water as long as we could before each race to keep our muscles warm.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JVG251B4Je4/UFfeh4naTfI/AAAAAAAAASg/-077vCKC_d8/s1600/CircleCPreRace.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JVG251B4Je4/UFfeh4naTfI/AAAAAAAAASg/-077vCKC_d8/s400/CircleCPreRace.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pre-Race and no rain.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zP1b7HrK4pU/UFfetbma0OI/AAAAAAAAASo/fW9PjTT7bTU/s1600/CircleCRain.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zP1b7HrK4pU/UFfetbma0OI/AAAAAAAAASo/fW9PjTT7bTU/s400/CircleCRain.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rain during tournament.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
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We won our second match up but then we had to turn around immediately and start our third. We just couldn't pull out another win. The three of us were warn out, tired and cold. <br />
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The tournament was a blast and I plan to do it again next year. I am also hoping to recruit Nicole and some of her teammates for a group of younger Narwhals. Other than the sore that I developed on teh bottom of my left big tow from having to start so many times on some rough starting blocks, I did get to bring home a prize from our 'win' set of games.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y0jVVgxhVQU/UFffreHBpaI/AAAAAAAAASw/XSHBu60JiQ0/s1600/3on3Booty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y0jVVgxhVQU/UFffreHBpaI/AAAAAAAAASw/XSHBu60JiQ0/s400/3on3Booty.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">3 on 3 Booty</td></tr>
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We didn't win much, but we sure had a blast trying!<br />
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<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-8372303673273106272012-08-24T14:47:00.001-07:002012-08-24T14:47:29.842-07:00Fly Like An Eagle There were many things that I _did_ do when I lived in San Diego for three years, and many things that I wanted to do that I didn't. I worked at the San Diego Supercomputer Center for three years and it is located across the street from the Torrey Pines Glider Port. For three years, I kept saying that I needed to go and check it out and I never did. During those three years, my friend Greg, spent a good bit of time there, getting his pilot's license and spending hours learning how to use the equipment and fly on his own.<br />
When I was compiling my list of 45 things, I remembered how fondly Greg spoke about paragliding and how peaceful it was. I told myself when I was making my list that it would not involve anything life threatening and technically speaking I guess paragliding could be borderline life-threatening, I had not heard about anyone dying from it.<br />
I called up the Gliderport on Tuesday morning and they said that conditions were right and the winds were favorable for flying so I put on a baseball cap and took off to fly above the cove. My instructor/tandem pilot was Bob. His description reads as follows:<br />
"Bob Hammond is a lifelong resident of La Jolla. Bob has been a Gliderport participant for over 40 years. In the mid-70's Bob hang glided in the mountains, and in 2004 he transformed his dreams of free flight into paragliding. Bob reflects a very patient and mellow approach to training newer pilots. He works with students at their own pace to ensure that they receive a top quality learning experience. Bob holds USHPA Advanced Paragliding Instructor and Tandem Instructor ratings."<br />
Bob was definitely patient and gave me clear instructions on how the take off would happen. He didn't just say, "Ready, set, jump off the cliff!," but it wasn't too much more difficult than that.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZOOuj_Rid44/UDfv01OEYSI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/2bkQDjX7Suk/s1600/TakeOff.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZOOuj_Rid44/UDfv01OEYSI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/2bkQDjX7Suk/s400/TakeOff.JPG" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jump!</td></tr>
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It is amazing how the gentle wind completely grabbed hold of the chute and yanked us into the air with barely any sensation of falling. We turned toward the north and we were off! We spent about 30 minutes gliding alternatively past the Torrey Pines Golf Course to the north and multi-million dollor homes to the south of the gliderport. One home that Bob pointed out to me was valued at about $80m and was owned by the man who started one of the grocery chains in California. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WsMJv-AJvIA/UDfxBrcUOQI/AAAAAAAAARE/-en99QHWZiE/s1600/TorryPinesCliff.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WsMJv-AJvIA/UDfxBrcUOQI/AAAAAAAAARE/-en99QHWZiE/s400/TorryPinesCliff.JPG" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Torrey Pines to the north.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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I wasn't going to tempt fate and carry my camera or iPhone with me and risk dropping it the 400 yards to the beach so I have to rely on the photos taken by the gliderport photog. And here is as close as he got proving that it was actually me.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oi_WBfgRY7k/UDfxq7CHUqI/AAAAAAAAARQ/MhXQSoRubM0/s1600/ReallyMe.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oi_WBfgRY7k/UDfxq7CHUqI/AAAAAAAAARQ/MhXQSoRubM0/s400/ReallyMe.JPG" width="306" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's Me!</td></tr>
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I really enjoyed the ride and the peacefulness of floating above the Torrey Pines Cliffs. However, since I did start to experience a slight attack of dizziness due to inner ear issues so while I probably won't paraglide again, I am very glad that I have tried it at least once and it is tough to beat the view from these seats!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uQqlp6DDVbQ/UDf2SCr8AqI/AAAAAAAAARo/mlk5JnZWv54/s1600/Paraglide.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uQqlp6DDVbQ/UDf2SCr8AqI/AAAAAAAAARo/mlk5JnZWv54/s400/Paraglide.JPG" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fly like an eagle!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Coming up soon:<br />
List update and UT Football!<br />
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<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-63159964872695186482012-08-21T06:22:00.000-07:002012-08-21T06:22:15.340-07:00World Champion A couple of weeks ago, I traveled to Southern California to work on two of my list items and get a little break from work and relax. No, I didn't instantly become a world champion surfer, but my surf instructor Alisa Schwarzstein-Cairns _is_ a world champion and legend in the surfing world. You can read about her <a href="http://www.surfermag.com/industry-news/2012-surfing-walk-of-fame-inducts-legends/" target="_blank">here,</a> <a href="http://www.surfingwalkoffame.com/woman/Alisa_Cairns.html" target="_blank">here</a>, and <a href="http://www.coastlinepilot.com/opinion/tn-hbi0802-sphaakenson-20120801,0,2321360.story" target="_blank">here</a>. Special thanks to my cousin, Fabiola for introducing me to Alisa because she was the perfect instructor for me. Alisa didn't waste a lot of time grilling me on popping up on my board on the beach nor did she take too much time instructing me on how to recognize when a wave is good to catch because she was going to do that for me. She either did none of the above because a) she knew I was a quick learner or b) she didn't think I had a chance of getting up and staying up and didn't want to waste our time.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aRpDEXDo17c/UDOGIPzrLdI/AAAAAAAAAQE/75mRtkLoDcU/s1600/SurfKooks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aRpDEXDo17c/UDOGIPzrLdI/AAAAAAAAAQE/75mRtkLoDcU/s400/SurfKooks.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Surf Kooks!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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After wiggling and giggling myself into the wetsuit and swim booties and the requisite (according to Christianne) photo in front of the 'kooks' sign we were off to the beach. The biggest thing that struck me on the descent to the water, was the image of about 20 surfers floating about 10 yards out in the water gazing out to sea watching for the perfect wave. They looked like sea lions popping up through the waves as bad ones rolled by them. I must admit it caused me a little bit of anxiety thinking about trying get up on the board around so many people, but that feeling quickly passed when I remembered that I would be out there with Alisa. She went over the key points again, including that when I fall, the best way to go down is with my butt first. A round of hugs to Fab and Christianne and we were off. Masters swimming practice definitely helped with the paddle out as well as the pull up on the board.<br />
On the first attempt, Alisa told me to turn and start paddling quickly. I did as I was told and suddenly received a huge push from behind, tried to pull up on the board and promptly fell. In my head I was thinking, "Man, I thought I was doing great paddling myself, but that Alisa is so powerful coming from behind to push me." After a couple more tries and falls....<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OVQZzOtQjmY/UDOIogxbBQI/AAAAAAAAAQM/EQ4gzs585mQ/s1600/MeSurfine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OVQZzOtQjmY/UDOIogxbBQI/AAAAAAAAAQM/EQ4gzs585mQ/s400/MeSurfine.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hang Ten!!!!</td></tr>
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....I GOT UP!!!!!<br />
I can totally see why surfing can become addicting and it is probably a good thing that I don't live on the west coast because I would be out there watching for waves to ride like those 20 others. It was truly exhilarating and exciting and just so much fun. I could have gone on forever, but after about 2 hours and several successful rides, my body just wouldn't let me paddle out anymore and we called it a day. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Dyjg0T4hGy0/UDOJs78QdJI/AAAAAAAAAQU/vjA04TZxOIA/s1600/TeeAlisa.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Dyjg0T4hGy0/UDOJs78QdJI/AAAAAAAAAQU/vjA04TZxOIA/s400/TeeAlisa.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alisa and Me after surfing</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Thanks to Fabiola for introducing me to Alisa, for Alisa and for Christianne my cheerleader and photographer. The end of the day was enjoying a glass of wine, watching the Olympics with Fabiola and Chuck, and getting to watch the sunset of Laguna Beach from the balcony chez Kinder.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yJpKRlVmqGo/UDOK3VopfLI/AAAAAAAAAQg/QxXnMAE7KSc/s1600/Lagunasunset.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yJpKRlVmqGo/UDOK3VopfLI/AAAAAAAAAQg/QxXnMAE7KSc/s400/Lagunasunset.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laguna Sunset</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-12832814393827110452012-08-09T06:10:00.002-07:002012-08-09T06:15:04.897-07:00Which Came First We all know the line, "Which came first, the chicken or the egg," and of course, this post relates to my desire to get at least 1 egg from a chicken that lived in my backyard. Many people have conjectured why I have this urge. My friend, Alison, says that I am obsessed with the idea because of my impending menopause and that I want the egg from a chicken because I won't be producing my own sometime in the near future. Thanks Alison.<br />
I believe that I have placed this on my list because of remnants of childhood. I remember spending time on my cousins' farm as a child and also remember having a large garden at one of the houses we lived in when I was younger. We didn't have chickens there, but at one point we did have rabbits, 52 at one time to be exact. I had forgotten how many we had until I was watching one of those old home movies and in video from that time, there was a homemade "Vacancy" sign attached to the rabbit pen and I asked my mom how many we had and was amazed at the response. I hadn't remembered that number but do remember that the fried "chicken" legs I ate from time to time looked a little different than I had remembered from KFC.<br />
Last year was a trial run with the chickens. At Nicole's school, the 1st graders get eggs in the spring and place them in incubators while studying the life cycle of chickens and to observe the chicks pecking out of the shell and then get to have the chicks in the classroom for a bit. My friend Susan had arranged for us to get some of the chicks and raise them in a pen in my backyard. Since I was not a professional chick sexer a la Dirty Jobs and Mike Rowe (see the video below) it was going to be luck of the draw on hens vs. roosters.<br />
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It takes about 5 months before you know the sex of a chicken. Around the 5 month mark, one of the two white chickens started to crow. Upon closer inspection, the two white chickens had spurs on their legs just above their feet, identifying them as male. After a couple of weeks, I had gotten pretty tired of the crowing and also didn't want to annoy my neighbors too much. I called a local farm store and they said they would take the two white roosters off my hands. Since I didn't want the remaining, multicolored chicken to be lonely, I bought a hen from Callahan's when I dropped off the two offending roosters.<br />
The new chicken was multicolored like the 3rd of the original 3. I could tell it was going to be trouble from the get go. One morning while Nicole was letting them out of the coop to the chicken run, the new chicken got out and started to climb a tree attempting to escape to the greenbelt behind the pen. We both tried to capture it and it just kept climbing higher. I got the brilliant idea to try to use the pool net to snag him out of the tree and put him back into the coop, only the execution was not as smooth. After using the 3-rung ladder that was close by to climb on top of the shed/coop, I couldn't net the chicken nor could I get down off of the coop. Nicole had to have my neighbor, Suzy, rescue me with their tall ladder. Nicole and I decided to take a short, breakfast break and we had to wait for Susan and her husband and son, Jon and Sean, to come and help us. It took the three adults armed with a rake, long stick and swimming pool net and the two kids to capture the chicken and get him back to the safety of the chicken run.<br />
About a week after the new chickens arrival, the third of the first set of chickens decided to start crowing too. As we were leaving on vacation, I didn't have time to take this rooster, disguising as a hen, to Callanhan's for an exchange, so I decided I would do so upon returning. Unfortunately, last year's heat was brutal. While in Savannah, I got a call from Susan who was caring for the chickens, that the third of the original batch had died due to the heat, which I have come to find out is pretty normal due to the Texas summers. I didn't want to tell Nicole because I was worried that she would be upset but when I finally did tell her, her first reaction was, "Aw." then promptly exclaimed, "Friend chicken!"<br />
While trying to help the last chicken not perish from the heat, during the day I would prop open the door to the coop and attach a huge piece of 4X4 cattle guard to the doorway of the coop to let the air circulate even though the chicken also had a chicken run to the side. One afternoon I had gone out to check on it and there were multicolored feathers on the outside of the cattle guard. I felt horrible because I figured another animal like a fox or something had come from the greenbelt, climbed into the coop, and got the chicken. Then, a day later, I saw the "hen" in the greenbelt just beyond the chicken wire the lines our property and it started to crow. He tormented us for a couple of days walking back and forth along our property line crowing each morning. I tried to help it come back by placing the chicken ladder that Jon had constructed over the chicken wire, but the chicken eventually disappeared into the greenbelt. I did hear it about a week latter crowing deep in the mini-forest then the crowing ended.<br />
At first I thought I was not meant to have chickens, as did my vegetarian friend, Alison, then I decided I would not give up on this idea and put it on my list to get at least one egg from a hen in the backyard. We eventually got some hens from a neighbor who was relocating and on the morning of Nicole's birthday...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ta da!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Thanks to everyone who made this possible including Susan, Sean and Jon for helping build the chicken coop/run, my neighbors who put up with the crowing from last year and to Suzy for going so far as to buy some organic eggs to secretly place one in the coop in case this year was as disastrous as last year and being supportive of my goals. Also to Kellyn who, as she says, "Does not do chickens" but has helped care for them from time to time.Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-19924457766984853012012-08-08T13:29:00.001-07:002012-11-06T04:47:23.388-08:00List Update - End of SummerJust a quick post to update the status of the list...I have had to change a few things in the interest of time and physical ability, but many things remain the same. I am in the home stretch of the year and the list and truly hope to accomplish all of them.<br />
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<strike> • Get physical exercise 5-6 times a week for 45 weeks - Ongoing</strike><br />
• Austin 5k - Run for the Water<br />
<strike> • Danskin Triathlon - June</strike><br />
<strike> • Highland Lakes Challenge - October</strike><br />
• 135/8 - Ongoing<br />
<strike> • Masters swimming meet/ 3x3 Challenge - TBD</strike><br />
<strike> • Diva Dash - April</strike><br />
<strike> • Change Hair - January</strike><br />
• Passport Vacation - TBD<br />
<strike>• Trip to San Diego with Kim & Stacy and others – July/August</strike><br />
<strike> • Paragliding - August</strike><br />
<strike> • Surfing - August</strike><br />
• Snowboarding/skiing – November/December<br />
• Chicken S*&t Bingo - Fall<br />
<strike> • Zip lining - March</strike><br />
<strike> • Make bed each weekday morning - Ongoing</strike><br />
<strike> • Plant garden/produce veggies and herbs - Spring</strike><br />
<strike> • Get an egg from hens - Spring</strike><br />
<strike> • Empty kitchen sink each weekday night - Ongoing</strike><br />
<strike> • Redecorate Nicole’s room for 10th birthday - June</strike><br />
• Blanton B Scene Art Party - November 30<br />
<strike> • AMOA Opening - Janauary</strike><br />
• Lenoir Special Seafood Dinner – November<br />
<strike> • Opera – Lucia di Lammermoor – February</strike><br />
<strike> • Broadway Across America – Wicked – February</strike><br />
<strike> • Ballet – Fall</strike><br />
<strike> • Paramount Theater – Summer</strike><br />
<strike> • UT Football home game -Opening game vs. Wyoming</strike><br />
• Symphony - December<br />
• Volunteer for Thanksgiving or Christmas<br />
<strike> • Texas Advocacy Project – Handbags for Hope became KW Red Day</strike><br />
<strike> • SXSW – Focus Movie – March</strike><br />
• Austin Film Festival – October<br />
<strike> • One handwritten note a month to Nicole – Ongoing</strike><br />
<strike> • One handwritten note a month to a Friend or Family member - Ongoing</strike><br />
• Photography Class - TBD<br />
• Art Class - TBD<br />
<strike> • Top 45 at 45 Blog – Ongoing</strike><br />
<strike> • Courage to Change Blog – Ongoing</strike><br />
• The Artist’s Way morning pages and art dates – Ongoing<br />
<strike> • iPhone Apple class – January</strike><br />
<strike> • Practice French – Ongoing</strike><br />
<strike> • Whole Foods or Central Market Cooking class became Le Cordon Bleu Class - TBD</strike><br />
• Organize Family Birthday Calendar<br />
• Turkey Trot or Jingle Bell run 5KTheresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-70765785205286738982012-07-18T05:27:00.002-07:002012-07-18T05:27:52.373-07:0010 Minutes . . .I can't really apologize for not posting in a while since it has happened before ... I have been busy with work and actually took a vacation. I figure it is time to get back to blogging.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2012 Danskin Race Number</td></tr>
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I finished the Danskin! Every year I say to myself, "This is the last time I do this race." Not because I don't like doing the triathlon, however I just don't like this course. As I mentioned before when I wrote about the Diva Dash, it is quite hilly and an unforgiving course. The bike ride, for me, is really tough with 4 major hills and the run is even worse because in addition to the hills, the ground is covered in stones and large chunks of wood disguised as mulch and are both serious risks to my knees and ankles. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2012 Danskin Race Results</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Nonetheless, I improved my time from the Danskin 2008 (the last time I had done the race) by at least 10 minutes! A large portion of that time came from the swimming and biking legs of the race. From 2008, I improved the swim by 6 minutes and the bike by 4 minutes. My transitions were a wee bit long in both years but the run stayed the same...no real surprise there since I trained mostly in the swim and bike. To give an idea of how strong I am in the swim, I finished 27th of 821 total entrants with my time in the swim...it goes downhill from there. My bike placement was 310 and my run was 572. I of course have to have a new strategy of training and that is to spend more time on the bike and running while keeping up with my true passion which is swimming.<br />
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Needless to say, I felt great in the swim and was pretty much passing people regularly in the water and noticing that I was the only light blue cap getting out of the water with other various colored caps that represented the different waves of start times. That changed too drastically once the bike started and I could see from the Sharpie numbers that people were passing me at a regular pace who I had passed in the swim. I still thank my Masters Swimming teammate, Meryl, for all her help on the bike course. The help from the advice was immeasurable to that portion of the race. <br />
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I didn't feel great on the bike portion, merely adequate. The hills were still pretty tough, I just felt like my recovery after the hills was better than in past years. I was conscious of needing to be sure to hydrate and consume some calories to finish the bike part and prepare for the run.<br />
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Since I had just done the run portion when I did the Diva Dash, there were no surprises to overcome. What is interesting to note for me is that the run time at the Danskin was pretty much what I had done on the Diva Dash minus the obstacles. Of course during the Diva Dash, I did have a swim/bike warm up either.<br />
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I still am not sure if I will do the Danskin again, although it is tempting to see if I can improve my time once again by training better...only time will tell. One thing is for certain, I don't do it for the medals...this years medal was a little too blingie for me, and heavy to boot!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dankin 2012 Finishers Medal</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-11576624099428831352012-06-08T20:07:00.003-07:002012-06-08T20:11:59.580-07:00Le Cordon Bleu - Grand Hotel FavoritesBoy I am really behind! I have been so busy with work and clients that I don't often want to be on the computer after I am done and prefer to stare brainlessly at the TV or just the ceiling.<br />
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A couple of weekends ago, I took a class at the Le Cordon Bleu here in Austin with my friend, Samaneh. We got a tip from my other friend, Melyssa, that Travelzoo was featuring half-price classes at the school and decided it would be fun to do it. I looked over the class schedule that ran through the fall and had my favorites picked out and ended up choosing Grand Hotel Favorites because I liked the class description AND it was happening on a weekend when I was pretty sure I didn't have to work. Not having to work was a HUGE part of the decision. My second choice, All about Thai ( or a title close to that) takes place when I am supposed to be in San Diego attempting to surf so Grand Hotel Favorites it is!<br />
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Our instructor was Chef Macry and he really made the class enjoyable. He had a really good sense of humor and really knows his stuff.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chef Macry</td></tr>
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We started out learning how to make a Ceasar salad from scratch, in other words, how to make the dressing from scratch using fresh garlic and anchovies, then we made a shrimp and scallop seafood cocktail. The tricky part about both of them is that the recipe cards were not exactly how Chef M. prepared the dishes as our demonstration and I am not the best at following recipes all the time. I could have drank the dressing for sure and kept dipping the homemade croutons into the 'sauce' while assembly my plate. The seafood cocktail was pretty straight forward and you can see the image below of both apps.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3OOvlRd87bM/T9K45aojCII/AAAAAAAAANs/k3XDDhBsYDc/s1600/LCBAppetizer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3OOvlRd87bM/T9K45aojCII/AAAAAAAAANs/k3XDDhBsYDc/s320/LCBAppetizer.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yum!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
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The entree, Veal Oscar, was a little more involved with several steps that sort of slipped my mind when we went back to the kitchen to prepare it. My biggest mistake was seasoning the veal too early so when I breaded it and cooked it, the breading didn't stick to the meat and the oil was a bit hot so it browned (in other words burnt) the breading before the meat was really ready. Oh, and the crab cake was more cooked on the outside then on the inside so it kinda fell apart when I was plating it. You know how sometimes pictures don't do some things justice? In this case, the picture does the entree WAY more justice than it was in person. The veal tasted pretty good, however I was so full from eating the extra croutons from the salad, that I really wasn't that hungry.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Veal Oscar with butter reduction</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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We were at least 30 minutes behind finishing up so we did not make the dessert so Chef Macry prepared a dessert for us that was yummy even though I couldn't finish it all. Below is a pic of the dessert and then one of Samaneh, Chef and myself.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Les Chefs</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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I have run out of mental energy write much more in this post...I did have a great time with Samaneh and hope to do another cooking class even though I have met my quota for this year's list.<br />
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Next post, Danskin Triathlon!<br />
<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-53841333589895937832012-05-09T20:01:00.002-07:002012-05-11T09:18:28.719-07:00Bootcamp Remember when you were in college and you would go out with your friends for a night of drinking? I am speaking hypothetically of course but picture this. You pick a bar downtown that is playing some fun music and decide to be a little wild and start ordering shots. After the first one, you think, I am not really feeling it so I should have another. Then you repeat this same 'thought and action' routine say 2 or 3 more times. It is after the last shot that you start feeling the effects of the first one. You think, hey, this is feeling good...about 15-30 minutes later, the second and hypothetical third shot kicks in and that is when you start thinking, "Oh no, there are still a few more shots that haven't fully entered my system." If you are lucky, you get off easy and all the dancing you do will help work off the effects of the tequila, aka tokillya, as well as the greasy burger/taco/BestWurstSausage you consume on your way home. If you aren't lucky, you spend the night in the bathroom or in bed watching the room spin.<br />
Going to boot camp is kind of like doing too many shots of tequila. At first you think, 'Wow! Even though this is only the second time I am taking this class and I am feeling great!' About 30 minutes into the class, you are still feeling pretty strong but your legs start to not perform from all the lunges and squats. Finally, toward the last few minutes of class you can barely kick your legs out while attempting the 50th burpee. One day I will be able to do them like this extremely fit woman on YouTube.<br />
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You would think I would learn my lesson from the last time I did boot camp at 24 Hour Fitness with Kellyn, but I didn't. The first time I tried the class was just a few days before I went zip lining with my buds Alison, Amy and Missy. The timing was not good for having to trek up hills to reach the zip lining stands. I made it through the zip lining adventure despite my sore-from-boot-camp body.<br />
Just like the slow integration of the tequila into one's system on a night out, so too is the slow progression of pain throughout my body after doing boot camp. While I am actually doing the class, I feel pretty good and strong, it is the 24 to 48 hours later that it hits me. As I was laying in bed unable to move very easily 48 hours after this second time I did boot camp, the analogy dawned on me that taking boot camp is like playing drinking games or doing shots in college. I start to feel a muscle twinge in say my neck and arms and eventually I can barely walk and resort to waddling around my house, to and from Nic's school and having to explain to my clients my slow motion walk while showing houses, not unlike the hangover walk.<br />
While I do want to do more boot camps very soon, I have decided that it is best that I NOT do another one until after the Danskin Triathlon in early June. I have to devote my exercise time to swimming, biking and running, none of which I can do for 2-3 days after taking boot camp.<br />
Since I am back to regularly scheduled workouts of swimming, biking and running, this morning I decided to take a run around the neighborhood since I had an appointment that would keep me from swim practice. The run felt really good, I was well hydrated and the temperature outside was pleasant. My biggest concern in making the transition from running the neighborhood to running during the Danskin is twofold. First, I have all my running accoutrement as seen in the photo below:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-skFH2y7x0qI/T6stA70jRgI/AAAAAAAAANI/jtTx-ZeEzuk/s1600/P1000375.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-skFH2y7x0qI/T6stA70jRgI/AAAAAAAAANI/jtTx-ZeEzuk/s320/P1000375.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Running Gear</td></tr>
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The biggest thing that I can't use during the Danskin is my iPod and Nike case....I should be able to wear my Nike Fuel band and Garmin to track my fuel points and heart rate and speeds on the bike and run.<br />
Second, as I mentioned in my post about the Diva Dash, I don't like the course as it is hilly and littered with large chunks of wood mulch and small stones and I won't have Kellyn there to motivate me up the hills. I am sure I will do fine as I have run more, swum more and will be back on my bike this week, I just want to do better than fine. I did have a good run this morning (see photo below), keeping a good pace and finishing better than I have in recent months, so I am definitely looking forward to June 3!<br />
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My swim team is doing an open water swim this coming Saturday and one of my teammates has offered to bike the Danskin bike course with me once or twice before the race so I am getting more training than ever.<br />
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Garden Update coming soon....Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-18781487086021690352012-04-27T15:11:00.000-07:002012-04-28T07:08:34.517-07:00Diva Dash In the fall, I received an email from Karen E. about the SHAPE Diva Dash just as I was finalizing my top 45 list and it sounded intriguing enough to add it to the list especially since I was going to be doing it with some fun people including Karen, Holly, Marcelle and Kellyn. <br />
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You know how sometimes in a professional players' contract they forbid them to do certain activities like skate boarding, pogo sticking, or motorcycling in order to avoid injuries that could cost the player and the team a lot of money? Well, Karen E. went skiing in January and this is what happened to her:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ILYglb5Gopk/T5q11M_pBeI/AAAAAAAAAMY/28yjRFovRZY/s1600/KarenMountainStretcher.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="246" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ILYglb5Gopk/T5q11M_pBeI/AAAAAAAAAMY/28yjRFovRZY/s400/KarenMountainStretcher.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Karen's personal escort down the mountain.</td></tr>
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She ended up needing knee surgery and not getting to train for the race. She was a great sport though and actually came with us, mostly for the free swag bag and beer, but we really appreciated the fact that she drove us to the race and took some great photos. Below is a picture of the 5 of us pre-race:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Divas from L-R: Holly, Me, Karen, Marcelle and Kellyn</td></tr>
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Before the race, the four of us who were actually running that day made a pact to end the race together. I was to benefit from this pact because the other Divas are actually faster than I am at running. Another fact of note is that I had to psych myself up for the run since I knew the course all too well having done it 3 times during the Danskin Triathlon in the past. I don't like the course, period. It is more like a trail run up and down hills with large pieces of wood mulch that spread all over the course to prevent it from getting too muddy in case it actually rains in Austin. The course is also quite hilly with large and small rocks scattered all over the place and hazardous to people like me who are prone to twisting their ankle on a flat surface just merely walking down the sidewalk. Even with all these things against me, I was determined to run the entire time and knew that the other three ladies would be there to encourage me.<br />
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The first obstacle was fairly easy and consisted of walking across a balance-beam type maze raised about 8 inches from the ground. If you slipped off the beam you were supposed to go back and start again...this rule was not really enforced, but I made it across the first time so it was no big deal. The second obstacle you can see in the photo below:<br />
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We had to run through the inner tubes on the ground like football players while simultaneously trying to avoid getting knocked to the ground by these pink Hoppity Hop or Jumping Balls that had these oddly wicked looking smiley faces on them. <br />
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A couple of the next obstacles were similar and had us ducking under those plastic flags woven over a maze or bungie chords crisscrossed throughout a wooden frame. My favorite 'challenge' came next and was a tent without a top on it and was filled with bubbles! One of the odd obstacles, in my opinion, was when we had to pick up a small log and run up a hill then down again ala the movie An Officer and A Gentleman. I was wearing my Nike Fuelband and decide to just carry the log under my right arm to be sure to keep my left arm moving in the proper motion because I was getting as much credit for this run as possible!<br />
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One of the last 'ground' obstacles featured 5 rows of those plastic barricades that we had to maneuver over which brought us to the last hill of the course. My guardian angel, Kellyn, noticed that I was pretty far behind our pack and came back to encourage me up the hill and to keep moving. When we came up the hill and around the curve, I could tell it was the final leg because we were next to the water. The breeze off of the water was refreshing and because I love to be in the water, I really enjoyed two of the last three challenges. The first consisted of five long buoys floating in the water that we had to hop over and then in the second water challenge we had to grab an inner tube and place it around our waists then go out into the lake a short distance around some pyramid shaped buoys and return to shore. The very last obstacle was a wall made of rope that you climb up one side and down the other. The hardest part of this one was making sure not to get kicked by someone trying to throw their leg over the top of the wall. I met up with Holly and Marcelle on the other side and we all waited for Kellyn to get over then we crossed the finish line together. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We Made It!</td></tr>
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Not my favorite photo but Whateva!<br />
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We all enjoyed the experience so much we are planning on doing it again next year. Dressing alike like other participants in matching outfits including but not limited to tu-tus, tiaras, matching socks etc. is still up for debate.<br />
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Next Post: Bootcamp AKA Torture TreatmentTheresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-16471130700723261722012-04-25T07:47:00.003-07:002012-04-25T20:01:27.906-07:00Earth DaySpring Garden Update<br />
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It has been a while since my last post...been a VERY busy two weeks as I was away on business so the week prior and the week after are always busier than usual.<br />
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This past Sunday, April 22 was earth day so I thought it is only fitting to have a garden update. It would have also been my father's 88 birthday but he passed away 9 years ago this coming September. Here is a picture of him by some wildflowers taken by my older sister Ginny. I know that I got my love of nature from both my mom and my dad and fondly remember many days spent out of doors as a family. We had an old mobile home in the country near a lake called Lake of the Woods Club where we would spend summer weekends. It didn't have running water, but we loved it. We would make aluminum can pull-tab chains and drape them throughout the forest making trails for us to follow, have bonfires at night, fish and swim during the day and each night have a new report put on by us kids.<br />
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When we were younger, we moved a good bit mainly because our family was growing from 2 to 4 to 6 and finally 8 children. One of the first houses we lived in that I can remember was on Ingersol Drive and it is where I met my oldest and best friend Kim Mulhall (now Kim Hickey). We sold the house to the Spencer family when I was about three years old and I distinctly remember meeting Mary, who was my age, and vaguely remember her red hair and her frilly pink dress she was wearing when we were standing in the front yard of that house (Mary's family still owns that house as far as I know). Mary Spencer ended up going to the same St. Albert's Catholic school that I attended with Kimmy and we are still friends over 40 years later. Below is a photo of us in 2005 just before the 20 year reunion party for our graduating class from Alter HS. I didn't actually graduate from Alter, but I had gone to school with so many from the 1985 graduating class, 9 years with many of them, that I felt more connected to this class than the one in South Texas.<br />
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After Ingersol, we moved to the house on Rosalyn. This was one of my favorite houses from childhood. It had a HUGE backyard with apple trees and my mom, with help from my brother-in-law Steve, planted a BIG garden in the back. We had 52 rabbits at one time in cages along the side of the backyard and other animals including dogs and cats. I remember many fall days picking up apples from the ground and from the trees so that my grandmother could salvage all good parts from the apples to make pies and apple sauce. I would spend lots of time in the backyard looking at bugs and watching the plants grow. Below are several photos of our garden this year and one showing Nicole standing in between two corn plants. I have no idea how the harvest will be, but we are having a good time trying and Nicole is such a good little helper, often going out after school to water the garden without even being asked.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicole in the corn!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_V3TLq3QzNM/T5gK9-gaTDI/AAAAAAAAALs/eZfth4InRo0/s1600/TomatoesApril2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_V3TLq3QzNM/T5gK9-gaTDI/AAAAAAAAALs/eZfth4InRo0/s400/TomatoesApril2012.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our fav, tomatoes!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LPj3IIOq8V4/T5gLKQkhE4I/AAAAAAAAAL0/Y4LWvBIWYL8/s1600/CantelopeApril2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LPj3IIOq8V4/T5gLKQkhE4I/AAAAAAAAAL0/Y4LWvBIWYL8/s400/CantelopeApril2012.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Praying for some cantelope.</td></tr>
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The last house that we lived in before we relocated to Texas was on Claridge. There was a North and South Claridge and at one point, we figured out that there were at least 25 kids of various ages living on the loop. I remember walking to school in large groups, climbing the big tree in the front yard with perfect limbs for getting up high, playing kick-the-can into the late hours on summer nights and building all kinds of forts in the snow. As I sit here writing this post, it is really driving home the realization that I had a few months ago that our current home really is a combination of my favorite homes as a child. Nicole lives on the street with her very best friend, Grace who she has known since she was 18 months old (Kim and I met around the same age). There are some really good trees in the backyard for climbing. Presently, there are only 9 kiddos on our cul-de-sac of different ages but we often walk as a group up the elementary school that is a block away that I have dubbed the "Arrowpoint Gang." Nicole and I have a garden in the backyard and will have chickens again, maybe even rabbits (sorry Alison). Either I am trying to relive my childhood or pass on the best parts of my childhood to Nicole or maybe it is a combination of both.<br />
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I will update the garden growth over time....<br />
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Next Post: Diva Dash<br />
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PS. For those grammarians out there, I fixed some of the typos. If you find anymore, send me an email and I will correct them ; ) . <br />
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<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-86573102541128948472012-04-10T20:34:00.000-07:002012-04-11T06:30:58.695-07:00Besides Ice Cream I know that I keep promising to do a post about the spring garden and while I was outside watering it this evening, I think I realized I am hesitant to post anything because the garden always seems to need weeding or I want the plants to be bigger because they look wimpy to me. There is definite progress in growth, just not a lot of 'WOW' factor. Because it is already getting warm here in Austin, I am hoping we will be able to harvest something before the ground shrivels up. To keep me from shriveling up tonight while eating dinner, I actually had one of these:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e2JrhoEK5C0/T4T3tF0AvMI/AAAAAAAAAKs/oCFCR3NuWiM/s1600/Pacifico.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e2JrhoEK5C0/T4T3tF0AvMI/AAAAAAAAAKs/oCFCR3NuWiM/s400/Pacifico.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cerveza! Compliments of Pedro</td></tr>
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Those of you who know me pretty well, know that I am not a big beer drinker stemming back from an incident in high school and some quarters, but I am not going to get into that now. The beer just sounded like a good idea and it was nice and cool on a warm evening while watering the garden.<br />
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When I came back inside, Nicole had a little surprise to share with me, actually two of them. The first one is best shown in photos:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-afOj1pTgNes/T4T53fRzuCI/AAAAAAAAAK0/nhGovfITnBw/s1600/NicTooth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-afOj1pTgNes/T4T53fRzuCI/AAAAAAAAAK0/nhGovfITnBw/s320/NicTooth.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Now you see it...</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Now you don't!</td></tr>
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I keep forgetting that there are still some baby teeth in her mouth! She of course asked me if she was going to get some money from the tooth fairy. When I asked her if there was a tooth fairy she said, "Yes, it is you and you should dress up in wings and sneak into my room with the money in exchange for the tooth!" She really isn't greedy at all...maybe that will change in her teens.<br />
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The second surprise is this letter that she wrote to me while practicing her cursive in school today.<br />
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Understandably, It left me a little verklempt...talk amongst yourselves for now.<br />
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</tbody></table>Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-27056840409336683442012-04-08T18:12:00.002-07:002012-04-08T18:12:27.149-07:00Happy Easter! I have been so busy with work that I have not had time to post recently. I literally have been showing houses and then coming home to do paperwork that the blog has slipped. I have been pretty much keeping up with exercise to prepare for the SHAPE Diva Dash, but that is about it. My running is feeling better, thank goodness, so I won't die on the obstacle course.<br />
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Today is Easter Sunday. It has been a quiet morning for me mostly, which is a good thing because I needed a bit of a break. I got the proverbial bluebonnet picture of Nicole this year, see below.<br />
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She is growing up so fast...I think photos make her look older than she is, and this one really shows her personality I think.<br />
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On Friday, some friends and family came over for a little Easter get together. The kids decorated eggs, made resurrection biscuits, swam and then went up to the park to search for hidden Easter eggs. <br />
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All in all it was a really nice weekend. I will make time to take a photo of the garden this week and show the various veggies we are hoping to get.<br />
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Have a great week!<br />
<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-41182049898139313282012-04-01T19:31:00.001-07:002012-04-01T19:31:10.666-07:00Quarterly List Update It has been a very busy 3 months and it doesn't look like it is going to let up anytime soon. Work has picked up considerably and I am juggling several clients at once. I decided that it would be a good idea to do a quarterly update of most of the ongoing activities on the list to help myself track whether or not I am reaching my goals better AND to refresh my memory of what I said I would do in the first place!<br />
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Make Bed (each weekday morning)<br />
This item has really become a habit. I have worked it into my daily dressing routine in between drying my hair and using the Chi on it. It works perfectly because my bathroom heats up from the hair dryer so making my bed is the perfect interlude to cool off before I finish getting dressed. I actually can barely stand it when my bed is not made now. I did only make this a 'weekday' item but it has been spilling over into a weekend habit, too.<br />
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Empty kitchen sink (each weekday night)<br />
This has become a habit, too, much like making my bed. I find that I can't stand to wake up in the morning to find dishes in the sink, in the way of cleaning out the coffee pot to make coffee. I much prefer being able to quickly make coffee because the first sip is crucial to getting my blood moving in the morning. Much to Nicole's dismay, this item is helping her to clean out her lunchbox in the afternoon because I prefer it to be done as soon as she comes home as opposed to the next morning when I need it to be clean for her lunch.<br />
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One handwritten note to Nicole (per month)<br />
I have written 2 stories in their entirety for this particular item, however they both need polishing along with finishing the third story. I have been thinking about this book that I want to compile for her and will probably get some guest writers to submit other stories about Nicole because I am sure she would like to hear from them, too. I need to put this task in my calendar to remind myself to do it around the same time each month so I don't forget.<br />
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One handwritten note to Friend/Family <br />
I have been good about this item, too, although I still have to write March's note. I will simply write two in April, one at the beginning and one at the end. March was so jam packed with SXSW and work that the month ended before I realized I had not written the one for this month. I already know I want to write to, I just have to do it. I am really enjoying the handwritten part of this because I feel like my handwriting has suffered due to how much time I spend on the computer. My handwriting still is not the best, but it should improve the more I do it.<br />
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Courage to Change Blog<br />
Today is the 1 year anniversary of this blog, couragetochangeatx.blogspot.com . I have been writing the blog for 365 days and I am really proud of the fact that I kept with it. It has really helped me to learn that I don't have to do everything in a day and that I can break things down into smaller, manageable pieces. On occasion, I had to write several entries at once, but generally, it would not get past 3 total. Even during SXSW I was pretty good at posting regularly because I didn't want to fall too far behind. Technically, this item is complete...I may start another similar blog, but I think I have enough on my plate to let this one go for now.<br />
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Top 45 at 45 Blog<br />
I am really happy with the way this item is going...if you are reading this now, you can see the progress for yourself!<br />
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135/8<br />
If I didn't mention this before, the 135 represents the weight I would like to reach before the end of this year and the 8 is the clothes size I am aiming for by December 31, 2012. I can tell with the amount of exercise I have been getting, that my body is making changes. The scale hasn't changed all that much so I think the 8 will come before the 135. I don't obsess about this one all that much largely because I am not focusing on it because it will probably be a by-product of the next item on the list.<br />
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Physical exercise (5-6 times per week)<br />
Finally, my goal of 5-6 days of physical activity is pretty close to being met in the first quarter. I know that I told myself that this requirement is only for 45 weeks of the 52 weeks in a year because I needed to account for work (which has affected at least 1 week thus far) and illness (another week of minimal exercise due to sinus infection.) One thing that is helping to motivate me to reach my exercise goal is the Nike Fuelband. Yes, it is a glorified pedometer, in my opinion, but for some reason it is working to make me reach my exercise goals. <br />
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The Fuelband tracks the time, Nike Fuel, Calories and Steps you take in each day. You upload the info each day onto the Nike site and it tracks when you reach certain milestones.<br />
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The above video is really cool showing you how many different activities 'count' for Nike Fuel. My biggest frustration with the Fuelband is that I can't wear it when I swim and it doesn't work great when you are on a bike. I am training to do two triathlons this year so essentially, it won't count two of the three major exercises I do in a week. It is however motivating me to not sit at my computer as long as I might and to walk or run a little bit each day to reach my Nike goal.<br />
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Up next: Spring Garden <br />
<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-4240222800298132082012-03-28T22:16:00.001-07:002012-03-28T22:18:56.758-07:00Girlie Night - Dirty Dancing I am on the email list for Alamo Drafthouse, probably like most of Austin. When I received the email about a showing of Dirty Dancing at the new Slaughter Lane Alamo, I figured I could kill two birds with one stone: see Dirty Dancing on the big screen in order to see my friend, Susan, as one of the dirty dancing extras and visit the all-new Alamo. I immediately sent an email to my book club to see who was available to go see the movie. Once I got a some takers, I put a fun plan into action...<br />
I replied to the Alamo email that led me to the program manager of the Slaughter Lane location who forwarded my info to the Girlie Night host. We arranged for her to pull Susan in front of the crowd and tell everyone what it was like to be on the set. Susan did not know about the idea so it was going to be a surprise to her!<br />
Last night, we convened at my house in northwest Austin and headed to the polar opposite end of southwest Austin. I knew that it was going to take a while to get there, but I had no idea it would take as long as it did. I started to get pretty nervous on the drive because I had taken the time to set up the Susan Intro and then wondered if we were going to make it in time. After a little over an hour, we walked into the new, beautiful theater and I sent the other 4 in to find us some seats while I retrieved our pre-purchased tickets. When I got into the theater, my usual disappointment of sitting in the front row, was dismissed since I figured it was a perfect vantage point to see Susan interviewed.<br />
After the lights went down, Sarah, the host, was right in front of us talking about how excited she was to see a shirtless Patrick Swayze on the big screen. She then talked about how excited she was to have a dirty dancer in the audience and the look on Susan's face was priceless. I can't tell if it was one of horror or disbelief, but she was a good sport and stood up to chit chat with Sarah. When Sarah handed the mic to Susan to tell about the experience, she was a little disappointed to hear that Susan described it as hot, sweaty, long, boring and that some people on set were rude! After Sarah looked a little disappointed in the description, Susan responded that it was a fun experience to be on a set and that it was going to be fun to see it again in a theater since it had been about 25 years since the last time.<br />
I wish I had brought my good camera, but I was able to get this shot of Susan chatting up front before the movie. <br />
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You can see Susan in a green tank top at the 18, 36 and 41 second marks in the 'watermelon' scene below (she is probably in more shots, I can just pick her out quickly at those points).<br />
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x43vK0k6A2I" target="_blank">Watermelon Scene</a><br />
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She is also in the final scene, first at about the 3:44 mark in the back left and up close at mark 5:54 to the right of the Baby's parents dancing. She is wearing a green outfit and eventually dances with the smarmy grandson of Mr. Kellerman.<br />
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<a href="http://youtu.be/JJO_zQTDhb8" target="_blank">Final Dance Scene</a><br />
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(I tried to embed both of the scenes, but it was blocked so you will have to follow the link.)<br />
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One of the funniest parts of the night was when two different audience members came up to Susan after the film and asked to take pictures with her. On the ride home it was neat to hear Susan talk about the fact that the makers of the movie figured it would go straight to video and that the cast didn't think the movie was going to be big at all. Susan also mentioned that she didn't tell people she was in the movie and that, while filming the scenes in the Carolinas, they didn't know what the movie was really about and that the rude, waiter dude was one of the nicest actors on set. When the credits rolled, I realized the main choreographer was Kenny Ortega who is known for the High School Musical trilogy and Michael Jackson's This Is It concert tour. They seem to underestimate the audience that his dance numbers paired with catchy music will attract.<br />
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Fun night!<br />
<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-55546901075072624942012-03-27T08:44:00.001-07:002012-03-27T08:44:13.543-07:00SXSW Day 8 Recap I debated seeing any movies at all on Friday because Susan was leaving to go home mid-day and Nicole was missing me. Since Nicole got invited to have a sleepover and wanted to go, I decided to catch one last movie, The Do-Deca Pentathlon. As expected, it was a bit crazy downtown since the music portion of SXSW had started but the movie was early enough that the total craziness had not begun.<br />
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Movie Review<br />
<b>The Do-Deca Pentathlon</b><br />
Director: Jay Duplass, Mark Duplass<br />
Screenwriter: Jay Duplass, Mark Duplass
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Description-<br />
From Jay and Mark Duplass, the writer/directors of the Sundance hits
“The Puffy Chair,” “Cyrus” and the upcoming “Jeff Who Lives at Home”
comes “The Do-Deca-Pentathalon” - the story of two grown brothers who
secretly compete in a homemade Olympics during a family reunion. <br />
When their fierce and disruptive competition is uncovered, the
brothers must choose between their passion for beating the hell out of
each other and the greater good of the family.<br />
My Review-<br />
Initially I thought this movie would be a little more like Superbad or more like a Judd Apetow movie. I am not as familiar with the Duplass brothers films and ended up seeing this one and Safety Not Guaranteed during SXSW so now I am more familiar with their style. The movie was entertaining and fun, just not probably in my top 5 from SXSW. There was a good bit of conflict in the movie between the characters that seemed to be eventually resolved, I just wish there was more time spent on the activities in the Do-Deca Pentathlon. I think boys/men are more competitive with siblings as opposed to being cooperative...may be a gross over simplification of genders, but it is true for me anyway, so it was a little more difficult for me to relate to as opposed to Safety Not Guaranteed that was a little more quirky and at the center, about relationships. Also, the characters remind me of two brothers I know pretty well...I wonder if they are going to set up their own competition now after seeing this film. <br />
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I couldn't find a trailer for the movie so below is an interview with the Duplass brothers describing the inspiration for the film.<br />
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So, SXSW ended for me on Friday. I truly was not very interested in seeing the music, probably because I am spoiled with how much music can be heard in Austin year round and I don't really prefer being around such large crowds (don't feel safe wondering downtown alone going into bars, theaters seem safer.) <br />
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Before going into SXSW this year, I thought that I would only go this year and that would be it. I had a blast and the reality of SXSW, at least the film portion, far exceeded my expectations. Susan has already offered to come back next Spring Break to be with Nicole, so who knows, I won't rule it out!<br />
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Back to regularly scheduled blogging . . . need to do a First Quarter recap of ongoing items.Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-26244540528612443302012-03-26T19:10:00.000-07:002012-03-26T19:10:00.177-07:00SXSW Day 7 Recap Before Susan, Nic's grandmother, left Austin, I wanted to be sure to take her out for a couple of activities on her last night in town. Since I only bought the film badge and didn't buy anything to go and see music during SXSW, I took the advice of my friend, Paige, to meet up with her and some of her friends to see Diego's Umbrella at Waterloo Ice House on 35th Street. It was early enough in the evening for kids to come along so Susan and I went with Nicole and the Bradfords, Kellyn, Scott, Ian and Grace to eat dinner and enjoy some music.<br />
Diego's Umbrella did not disappoint! The group describes themselves as Gypsy Pirate Polka with a mix of rock, punk and ska intertwined. Kellyn pointed out a Greek feel to the music which was true and made me think of the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding and the music that was often playing in the background. The music was a lot of fun, at least for the adults, the kids seemed unimpressed. We would have stayed longer but the kids were ready to go after we ate and Susan and I had a movie to catch.<br />
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Pant's by Diego's Umbrella <br />
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After getting Nicole settled in with her friend, Grace, at the Bradford's home, Susan and I headed over to the Alamo Village satellite venue to see Girl Walk//All Day. We were a bit early and decided to grab a drink because Susan would have to wait for badge holders to go in first before verifying that there would be any seats available for her. After some nice conversation over a glass of wine at Cover 3, we returned to the theater, got in the non-badge holder line, and within 5 minutes, Susan was handed a free ticket from one of the producers of the film. Susan's excitement about getting a free ticket and being able to brag about it to Jay and Andy was priceless. More about Girl Walk//All Day below.<br />
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Movie Review<br />
Girl Walk//All Day<br />
Director: Jacob Krupnick
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Screenwriter: Jacob Krupnick
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Description-<br />
Girl Walk // All Day is a feature-length dance music video and tale of
urban exploration that follow three dancers across New York City. They
turn the city's sidewalks, parks, and stadiums into an evolving stage as
a story of rebellion, love, and discovery unfolds. Shot entirely in
public spaces, and funded entirely by crowd-sourcing, Girl Walk // All
Day is a statement about the power of community and public space. Set to
the album All Day by mashup musician Girl Talk, it's also an insanely
fun love letter to New York. <br />
My Review-<br />
Jay introduced me to Girl Talk music last summer and I really liked it then. My biggest concern was that chunks of it has some rap music with a good bit of cussing and I wasn't sure how Susan would like it. Not to worry, she LOVED the movie. Even I could have done without some of the lyrics, but the concept of the film was creative and the energy, especially of the female dancer, was contagious. Girl Talk does not have 'permission' for covering most of the music that he mashes up, so the movie Girl Walk//All Day is not eligible for distribution. According to the director and his wife, one of the producers, you can see the whole movie online. They didn't stay after for the Q & A because Girl Talk was playing the same night in downtown Austin for SXSW and they have never met or seen him life. Ironic part about that situation is that it was Jay and Andy at a previous screening of Girl Walk//All Day mentioned to the producer and director that Girl Talk would be in town playing SXSW...small world.<br />
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Below is the opening scene of Girl Walk//All Day. NOTE: Some lyrics are not appropriate for young ears nor in an office setting. Enjoy! <br />
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One more day of SXSW and then I have to wait until next year....Susan already offered to help watch Nicole in 2013!Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-31962060599040725872012-03-25T21:16:00.002-07:002012-03-25T21:16:38.071-07:00SXSW Day 6 Recap Once again, I had quite a bit of work to catch up on including a meeting with some clients whose house I am listing soon as well as a bunch of paperwork to finish. As a result, I only saw one movie on Wednesday. Additionally, I missed spending time with Nicole and enjoyed visiting more with Susan, one of Nicole's grandmothers, who was staying here helping with Nicole so I could take the time to attend SXSW in the first place.<br />
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Movie Review<br />
Bernie<br />
Director: Richard Linkletter<br />
Screenwriter: Richard Linklater, Skip Hollandsworth
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Description-<br />
In the small town of Carthage, TX, assistant funeral director Bernie
Tiede was one of the most beloved and appreciated residents, so it came
as no surprise when he befriended the town’s richest and meanest widow,
Marjorie Nugent. Soon, Marjorie became fully dependent on Bernie and his
generosity as he struggled to meet her increasing demands. When the
townspeople went months without seeing Marjorie, the people of Carthage
were shocked when it was reported that she had been dead for some time,
and Bernie Tiede was being charged with the murder. <br />
My Review-<br />
OH MY GOSH! OH MY GOSH! This movie gets not one but two OMGs because 1. it is based on a true story and this definitely fits the saying 'the truth is sometimes stranger than fiction and 2. the casting for this movie was perfect. A third OMG for the script because so much of it was so hilarious and had me thinking, 1. did that person actually say that and 2. giggling with anticipation for what might be said next. My best memory for the latter was when one of the townspeople was describing the state of Texas as 5 separate states all together and I couldn't wait to hear how they described Austin and the surrounding areas (I am not going to give it away, you will have to see the movie for yourself.) Jack Black was awesome as Bernie. I thought he played the character extremely well and didn't overplay it to the point of being annoying. Matthew McConaughy as the DA, Danny Buck was also well cast because he really sounds like he belongs in the town of Carthage (could be that he is from East Texas I am sure.) Finally, Shirley MacLaine as the mean, rich, small town terror reminded me of a combination of several of her more famous roles such as Tess Carlisle in Guarding Tess, Doris Mann in Postcards from the Edge, Ouiser Boudreaux in Steel Magnolias and finally Aurora Greenway in Terms of Endearment. <br />
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Preview Below:<br />
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Only two more days worth of recaps from SXSW then on to other items on my list!<br />Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-88494738392379843632012-03-24T21:59:00.001-07:002012-03-24T21:59:35.309-07:00SXSW Day 5 Recap I made it past the half-way point in one piece! I reconnected with Andy on Tuesday for another day-long marathon of movies and was not disappointed. You could basically call it 'Documentary Day' based on our viewing choices. I knew I had it in me for one more day of standing in line then sitting in theaters to be entertained by others.<br />
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Movie Reviews<br />
<b>Wonder Women!</b><br />
Director: Kristy Guevara-Flangan<br />
Executive Producer: Erin Prather Stafford
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Description-<br />
"WONDER WOMEN! The Untold Story of American Superheroines" traces the
fascinating evolution and legacy of Wonder Woman. From the birth of the
comic book superheroine in the 1940s to the blockbusters of today,
WONDER WOMEN! looks at how popular representations of powerful women
often reflect society’s anxieties about women’s liberation. "WONDER
WOMEN!" goes behind the scenes with Lynda Carter, Lindsay Wagner, comic
writers and artists, and real life superheroines such as Gloria Steinem,
Shelby Knox and others who offer an enlightening and entertaining
counterpoint to the male dominated superhero genre.<br />
My Review-<br />
I really enjoyed this documentary and it definitely got me thinking about how women are portrayed in comics but also on TV, in films and other places. The lack of women superheroes hadn't really crossed my mind until now. I really wanted to take Nicole to see it to open up her mind to strong women characters but I couldn't find the time. I will be watching for it to be on TV, PBS or get someone to tape it if it comes on HBO or premium cable channel. I did recommend to the director and producer that they should get in touch with GirlStart, a program whose mission is to get young girls interest in science, engineering and math. I figure showing this video could get a dialogue going for strong women in many areas of life, not just entertainment. If you get a chance to see the entire documentary, it is interesting to note how Wonder Woman changes over time from war time to peace time and beyond.<br />
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Preview below: <br />
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<b>Trash Dance</b><br />
Director: Andrew Garrison<br />
Producer: Charlotte Herzele<br />
Choreographer: Allison Orr<br />
Description-<br />
Sometimes inspiration is found in unexpected places. Choreographer
Allison Orr finds beauty and grace in garbage trucks -- and in the men
and women who pick up our trash. She joins city sanitation workers on
their daily routes to listen, learn, and ultimately to try to convince
them to collaborate in a unique dance performance. Hard working, often
carrying a second job, their lives are already full with work, family
and dreams of their own. But some step forward, and after months of
rehearsal, two dozen trash collectors and their trucks perform an
extraordinary spectacle. On an abandoned airport runway, thousands of
people show up to see how in the world a garbage truck can "dance."<br />
My Review-<br />
I loved this documentary because it shows such a personal side to the people who work hard everyday picking up our trash. I think we take it too much for granted like getting water out of a faucet. One of the coolest parts during the Q & A was seeing two of the workers and hear them speak about their job and the experience of making this documentary.<br />
Preview Below:<br />
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<b>Waiting For Lightening</b><br />
Director: Jacob Rosenberg<br />
Screenwriter: Bret Anthony Johnston
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Description-<br />
From the producers of "Step Into Liquid", comes "Waiting For Lightning",
the story of Danny Way, a young boy from a broken home in Vista, CA,
whose passion for skateboarding would one day bring him and his
creation, a ramp of prodigious and dangerous proportions, across many
cultural and ideological boundaries to attempt the impossible: jump
China’s Great Wall on a skateboard. It’s a film about how much abuse the
body can sustain, how deep you have to dig to survive the betrayals of
family, and how high and far dreams can fly.<br />
My Review-<br />
I really enjoyed seeing what life experiences drove Danny Way's passion. He didn't have the easiest life as a young boy/young man, yet he 1. survived it all and 2. had such great passion and was able to capitalize on his passion for skateboarding into a way to make a living. I would say the only part of it that bothers me is that with all the loss in his life, as a father himself, he still puts himself into situations that could be life-threatening that would end up leaving his son without a father. It is a tough dilemma to reconcile...follow your passion for what you do best even when it is life-threatening.<br />
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<b>Beauty Is Embarrassing</b><br />
Yes, I saw it again! Andy had not seen it even though I had previously and I did not mind, not one bit, watching it again and listening to Wayne White and Neil Berkeley talk about how they made the film and how passionate they are about it. Wayne White is so entertaining to boot!<br />
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Just three more days to recap and on to other things...training for the Diva Dash and then the Danskin Triathlon is keeping me busy along with finding time for work!Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8401041298854641122.post-91150368016250108392012-03-23T08:45:00.001-07:002012-03-23T08:45:39.507-07:00SXSW Day 4 Recap Day 4 was a Monday and since 1. Andy wasn't going downtown early
and 2. Nicole's grandfather, Pedro, was leaving, we decided to have
lunch at Phil's Burger place and I opted to see movies at the Alamo
Village satellite venue. Boy was I spoiled! It is was so easy to see
three movies all in a row because a. lines were a LOT shorter than
downtown and b. you stand in line inside the theater so the badges
really do seem to make a difference.<br />
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Movie Reviews<br />
<b>Beauty is Embarrassing</b><br />
Director: Neil Berkeley<br />
Screenwriter: Neil Berkeley, Chris Bradley, Kevin Klauber<br />
Description-<br />
Raised in the Tennessee mountains, Wayne White started his career as a
cartoonist in NYC. He quickly found success as one of the creators of
the Pee-wee's Playhouse TV show which soon led to more work design some
of the most arresting and iconic images in pop culture. Recently his
word paintings featuring pithy and and often sarcastic text statements
finely crafted onto vintage landscape paintings have made him a darling
of the fine art world. The movie chronicles the vaulted highs and
crushing lows of an artist struggling to find peace and balance between
his professional work and his personal art. This is especially
complicated for a man who struggles with the virtues he most often mocks
in his art...Vanity, ego and fame.
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My Review-<br />
I truly loved this documentary. I came away from this film feeling so happy and hopeful and uplifted. I actually saw it twice and enjoyed the Q & A with Wayne himself. I think what struck me the most about it is that Wayne just keeps on going as an artist, even when things get him down, he just keeps on trucking along. It also appears that he has a good life with his family and that they support one another in their endeavors. Check out the trailer below because it really sum up the documentary, but only gives a preview of the films greatness. Make note of how Matt Groening and Todd Oldham describe Wayne...really spot on in my opinion.<br />
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<b>The Hunter</b><br />
Director: Daniel Nettheim<br />
Screenwriter(s): Julia Leigh - Novel, Alice Addison- Screenplay, Wain Fimeri - Original adaptation
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Description-<br />
THE HUNTER is the story of Martin, a skilled and ruthless mercenary sent
into the Tasmanian wilderness on a hunt for a tiger believed to be
extinct. Hired by an anonymous company that wants the tiger’s genetic
material, Martin arrives in Tasmania posing as a scientist. He proceeds
to set up base camp at a broken-down farmhouse, where he stays with a
family whose father has gone missing. Usually a loner, Martin becomes
increasingly close to the family; however, as his attachment to the
family grows, Martin is led down a path of unforeseen dangers,
complicating his deadly mission. <br />
My Review-<br />
This movie was a sweet surprise! I wasn't sure if I was going to like it based on the description but the movie ended up being a good mix of thrill, suspense, personal connections. loss and intrigue. I have always liked Willem Dafoe, at lease in most movies and I was super excited when I knew Sam Neill would be in it. The scenery is amazing just to take in too so I would say many senses or tweaked during the 101 minutes of the film. Trailer from the movie below:<br />
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<b>Decoding Deepak</b><br />
Director: Gotham Chopra<br />
Screenwriter: Gotham Chopra
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Description-<br />
Film-maker and journalist Gotham Chopra spends a year following his
father and spiritual icon Deepak Chopra, separating the man from the
myth with a raw honesty only a son can have. What starts as decoding of
Deepak becomes an examination of himself, and possibly an allegory of a
world trying to make sense of itself. <br />
My Review-<br />
I really enjoyed this documentary because of the intimate portrait of a father and son. That the father and son are Deepak and Gotham Chopra was sort of secondary to me. In my opinion, Gotham explored and age old question of and son or daughter trying to come to grips with who their parents are and how they may see themselves in their parents and vice versa. The trailer below gives a good intro to the documentary and I highly recommend seeing it to anyone even if you are not a Deepak Chopra fan.<br />
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SXSW Recap, half down, half to go. Boy it was a busy week!!!Theresahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294793891546398445noreply@blogger.com0