Sunday, March 30, 2008

HAPPY BIRTHDAY WALLACE & GROMMETTE


Do CATS have a "terrible twos" stage of life? 

Jim and I are about to find that out!
Hard to believe that two years have gone by already....


Grommette - 3 months old

She was a tiny but a BOLD little Bengal Girl!

Wallace - 3 months old

At 4 months old, they could share a bed.

At 9 months old, they were judging running shoes...


Wallace and Grommette - 2 years old and simply WONDERFUL!

Friday, March 28, 2008

And another one down, another one bites the dust...

Yet another year and yet another round of CT Scans are over. They added a new one to the list ...throat (soft tissue). I guess that is in honor of my recent Thyroid Nodule.

All I can say is if you ever have to get a CT Scan with Contrast - skip the apple juice and grape juice flavors and go straight to Cranberry Juice. It is the least offending of the 4 choices. (grape, apple, orange or cranberry)


So now my yearly CT Scans look like this:
Brain
Neck (soft tissue)
Thorax (fancy word for Chest)
Abdomen
Pelvis

All of this over a spot that was less than 3 mm wide and 1.3 cm deep. CANCER is a nasty bastard, kids.

Here is hoping that this year's 2008 CT Scans are completely "UNREMARKABLE" because I love having the nickname N.E.D. (No Evidence of Disease) very much. I suits me just fine!

I'll let you know when I get the results. (probably not until later next week).

Hey, I'm not worried so don't you be, OK?

Life is GOOD! LiveSTRONG!

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Pass it on...

from my sister Heather, to me, and on to you...

PASS IT ON!

(More on Team Hoyt:  Website and an inspiring Video)

Life is Good! 
LiveSTRONG.

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Go ahead, brag about your tan lines....

and other such nonsense.  But don't expect any sympathy from me when you find yourself agonizing over a biopsy that could have been prevented with the use of sunscreen and a little common sense!

YO PEOPLE!  SKIN CANCER IS PREVENTABLE!  but first you have to acknowledge the possibility that you could actually get cancer! 

Oh, I'm sorry...that's right, you couldn't possibly get cancer from a TANNING BED now could you?  Never mind from just getting sun in the same spots season after season, like I did.  

Have I ever used a tanning bed? NO

Did I get the occasional tan and sometime even sunburn on my back and shoulders on many a long run or ride or a day at the beach?  YES

Was I diagnosed with Melanoma (SKIN CANCER) in 2005 in a spot that always saw a lot of natural sun during the race season? YES

Don't fool yourself.  If it can happen to me, it can happen to you!

SOME QUICK AND EASY FACTS from SKINCANCER.ORG:

Melanoma is the third most common cancer in women aged 20-39.

People who use tanning beds are 2.5 times more likely to develop squamous cell carcinoma and 1.5 times more likely to develop basal cell carcinoma.

Occasional use of tanning beds almost triples the chances of developing melanoma.

Friday, March 14, 2008

So this is what it looks like ...

When I am focused on nothing but the finish line!


HEY HEATHER!  I FINALLY had a reason to wear the PANDA ZOO hat we bought back in October 2005 after the Army Ten Miler!  Ha Ha!



CANCER to 5K- SPRING 2008 starts tomorrow!  
I can believe that it is already time to start another 12-week training group. We have a great group of runners and volunteers ready to go!  
12 weeks is going to fly by!

Wanna race with us?  
This year we will be doing the Survivor Harbor 7 Race (3-mile option) up in Baltimore, MD 
on Sunday June 8, 2008. 

If you not busy you should register and come and run the race! 
All the cool kids are doing it! LOL

Life is Good!  LiveSTRONG!  
Have a great weekend y'all!

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

HA! I have a new PR!

PR for those of you who don't run means "Personal Record" and I just realized that on Sunday at the St. Patty's Day 8K I set a new PR by over 14 seconds.

Marine Corps 8K - October 2004: 1:01:12

St. Patty's Day 8K - March 2008: 1:00:58

WAHOO!!

Now I am still a long way off from my 5 mile PR of 50:10 at the Alexandria Turkey Trot back in November 2002...

but I'll get back there...YOU CAN BET ON IT!

Life is Good! LiveSTRONG!

Monday, March 10, 2008

RR: St. Patrick's Day 8K

St. Patrick's Day 8K
Washington, DC
March 9, 2008

Official Chip Time: 1:00:58

General Thoughts: Cold, Windy and Wonderful Race Day!

After you've done a few years of running, you know when it's different. You know when you are having a good day. For me, the tip off was the sound my feet were making on the pavement or maybe that should be the "lack of sound."

I was running but I couldn't really hear my footfalls. The woman I was passing, in her Army 10 Miler tech shirt and wind vest had a heavy foot slap on the pavement - THUMP, THUMP, THUMP and I thought " Pick up your feet girl, your wasting your energy..."

The other tip that things were different this time, was the way that I was passing people early on and feeling good, strong, happy. The temp was 30F and the winds were 20-25 mph and I was running happy. HA!

8K (roughly 4.8 miles) was the distance and my goal was slow by average run paces - 13:00 minute miles - but FAST when you look at the times I had last season of 14:00s and beyond. I had a DREAM TIME for this early in the season - Sub 1:00 hour. Still pedestrian but some standards but faster than I have run in over 2 years.

Maybe it was the wind at my back or maybe it was Nancy's great advice yesterday to imagine myself "an Eagle being lifted on the winds" when we had a head wind a tip previously suggested by Ironman Triathlete Natascha Baddman. I know that my friend's Linae and Shawn's outstanding AGE GROUP results in Florida at the Armadillo Run 5k yesterday had me pumped and excited to JFR. (just freakin' run)

I was in a good headspace. No waterbelt, No GU - it's just 8K. I could have used the one and only waterstop closer to Mile 2.5 rather than Mile 3 but it was the same for everybody so there was no point in getting upset. Oh and 30F and cold water makes for some awful instant headaches!

I hit Mile 4 with nearly 9 minutes until the 1-hour mark as we turned left onto Pennsylvania Ave. I thought I had a SUB 1:00 in the bag but the race gods had other plans for me. There was some MENTAL training that I still needed to do.

You see the race route had about 5 out and back legs on the course. 4 of them I had remembered but number 5 was hiding less than 2/10 from the finish line. I was just tooling along, feeling good but ready to finish when I realized the runners in front of me were turning LEFT.

Brain: "WHAT? But the finish line is RIGHT THERE..."
Feet: Turn Left - Go, Go, Go
Brain: "Well FORGET IT, I'll never SUB 1-hour NOW!"
Feet: Around the traffic cone, look up please, where do we go now?
Brain: "THIS SUCKS, who makes you do this just before the finish line...
Eyes: Ease left feet, I see the finish line, glance at watch - LOOK 59:30..."
Brain: OH, DAMN! J_F_R - SUB 1:01 counts for something...
Feet & Lungs: GO, GO, GO

Well I did it... 1:00:58 and just about a 12:11 pace. I took another 45 seconds per mile off my pace from just 3 weeks ago when I race the Myrtle Beach Half Marathon.

In the last 10 weeks I have dropped 12 pounds and over 2:00 minutes per mile off my average mile pace in spite of on-going rotator cuff injuries. I can't WAIT to see what my times look like come early June!

Life is Good! LiveSTRONG!

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Testing ...One, Two, Three

Is this thing on?

AHEM....Wallace speaks:

Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Can the clumsy mountain bike?


LOL! We get answers to that question as well as many others... (Like where does mud go when you are wearing bike shorts? AND How much mud can a sports bra hold?)

There is a new event on my race calendar for mid-July now. Nancy and I will be teaming up to do 2008 Muddy Buddy - Richmond on July 13th.

Neither of us have much Mountain Biking experience but has that ever stopped me from doing something?

NAH! Bring on the MUD!

Now we just have to finalize that Team name....Any Suggestion?

Live is Good! Live STRONG!

Monday, March 03, 2008

Dear Right Shoulder:


Dear Right Shoulder:

I am writing to you to plead with your sense of decency and kindness. Won't you please, PLEASE do me a favor and RESPOND TO PHYSICAL THERAPY?

I mean, it has been 7 MONTHS already and you insist on continuing this charade of getting stronger for 4-6 weeks only to launch into severe muscle spasms and pain without any warning shots or at the very least initial minor indication of irritation.

If you insist on presenting yourself to TWO Orthopedic Surgeons and ONE Neurologist as "not serious enough to require surgery" than I am going to call your BLUFF and get back in the POOL!

You are on notice RIGHT SHOULDER! I am tired of your antics and frankly, your just going to have to get back to work because I am SICK OF MEDICAL CO-PAYS 2-3 times a week.

Respectfully,
Holly - the TRIATHLETE

PS: That is "TRI"athlete - that means SWIM, BIKE AND RUN, darnit!!

Sunday, March 02, 2008

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HEATHER!


From the first day Mom & Dad brought you home from the hospital, 
I knew my life would never be the same!


What I could have never imagined, is
how much better my life would be for having you in it!




You bring laughter and light to every moment. 




You are a passionate and beautiful woman.  

You are a compastionate and giving human being.

You are a fierce and determined competitor.



You are a loving sister, daughter and mother.



You are one of my best friends!

Happy Birthday Sister!  
I love you and I am so proud of the woman you have become!