You know, I really hate snow.

Except for when it gets me a day off work, then its fine...

...except for when I get dragged to the park, with the rest of the Borough, to take the Small Monstrosity sledging...and he does nothing but moan more than me!
But eventually he remembered that he wes meant to be there to enjoy himself and did well. The Boss also has the day, and she was busy taking pictures with her expensive camera that wouldn't link up to any laptops this morning without threatening to format the hard drive!

---

Back at home...

I have had a downloading frenzy! I have started downloading movies - and what a hassle it is! If anyone else has experience of this I would be delighted to hear how you do it?!
I don't like the idea of torrents and having a 'shared/ accessible' part of your computer...or however else it works?!
So I put some money on credit (as I do with my music d/l) and downloaded some films.
It all started as the Biggun had to watch The Poseidon Adventure and I tried to download that...failed! Then I had a host of codecs to put on the machine, and the incredibly slow VLC Media player that 'Guaranteed' to play any files however problematic...guess? It didn't. Then I found out that the enormous film that I did sucessfully download would not be read from my external HDD as it could only read files less than 3.9Gb at a time...apparently.
So back to Google...
Another piece of downloaded software to now split the file up, make a play list within VLC then try and play it back sucessfully!

What a hassle! Suddenly Blockbusters is looking good!

---

 Had a wonderful 'cross over' moment last night.
I like the whole social networking thing - FaceBook, Twitter, LJ I do it all and most from my iPhone as well. I have some people that are 'cross platformed friends' and whilst on FaceBook last night my wonderful friend sut_nam  popped up on FB chat! Love it when that happens, dead surprising! Turns out she was at work, skiving woman! But great to communicate in 'live' time...

---

 Been downloading Seasick Steve today as well. Already had the other two albums but the new one is now out. I was reminded about this when he was on Top Gear the other night...

this clip is from Jools Holland..a brilliant music show over here. Anyroad, getting to know the rest of the album that these two songs are on...

---

 Right.
Off to see if that film has split and will now play?!
Wish me luck!

I’m frickin’ sick. Some sort of stomach thing. Shortly after my last post at 03:00 I started having to GO. A LOT!

Well shit!

Oh yeah... HAHAHA!

Needless to say. Not going in to the office today.

Sleep is still a precarious thing for me.

Was in bed by 10:15. Asleep before 11:00. Awake at around 01:00. Wide awake. No idea what it was that woke me.

Could have been a bizarre dream I seem to remember shreds of. Could have been my dinner? Dunno. No idea.

Got up for a while. Laid back down and read for a while. Turned off the light because my eyelids were trying to slam shut. (Or so I thought) No dice. So up again. Another hour or so and I’ll go ahead and turn the coffee pot on.

Shit! I have to work today... TODAY!!

Where’s the irony? I was just talking about how much better I was sleeping. *sigh*

The dream thing is strange too... I haven’t remembered too many of my dreams since I got The Darth Vader Machine. wasn’t even sure if I was dreaming there for a while. But don’t you go insane if you don’t dream? *grins*

But now sometimes when I’m sleeping I realize I’m dreaming. Still don’t usually remember them but they are there.

Had my gloves, hoody and coat. All good.

When I got out to the car however, to drive to the park and ride, since I had parked on the top floor of the garage, the windows and mirrors of the Saturn Express were quite iced over. Hadn’t expected a freeze because I hadn’t listened to the news until this morning. That took a while to rectify.

Got to work late and then realized sometime after 2:00 that I had worked straight through lunch time. Guess I was really into it. Nahhh. That couldn’t be it. Anyway decided to leave work about an hour early because I was starving. Well, I was really hungry anyhoo.

Got to the house and popped a ChilliMac concoction I got at the central market counter at HEB last night, into the oven and put on some lima beans. Parked my car on the 3rd level tonight.

When everything dinged I sat down to eat. And...

Found it goooooooooood. So I ate too much and am currently somewhat miserable. Too tired to do much about it though. And of course I did manage to get some on my shirt! Just a little Smeah. But a smear nonetheless. Load of wash ensues. There’s enough of that left over I can eat it for lunch tomorrow and Thursday I think.

Am still trying to get through the Gmail crap, But my account is no longer mocking me.

Still trying to find a place for everything in here. I hate feeling like I live in a mess. Recent development for me. I mean I can keep a kitchen straight, and a bathroom tidy. But at my desk, in the living room and bedroom order has yet eluded me. I guess I’m still trying to figure out how I want everything configured.

Need to get out of the storage room down the hall. Only 50 bucks a month but I do not like having to pay TWO storage bills.

Got a shelf unit in there I think I’m gonna pull this weekend and put into the bedroom. The extra flat space should lend itself to a sense of order. I’ll take whatever boxes are left out to the other storage room. Along with a couple of chairs. And that will leave just the damned credenza and my bicycle in there. Think I’m gonna sell the credenza on Craiglist and move the bicycle in here or onto the patio. If I have to look at it every day it may compel me to get on it more. I’ve been lazy.

Next payday I think I’ll be able to order my curtains.

Guess you actually can get used to almost anything, because the light seeping in from behind the blinds doesn’t seem to bother me as much. Sleeping better as far as I can tell. Might actually sleep longer if the alarm didn’t have to go and wake me up! Dunno for sure yet. The sleep chart I’m doing should tell me something though. Have a better idea after the two week period.

What does bother me though is the temperature difference I can feel a foot or so back from the window. Curtains should help with that as well.

Decided I will NOT be going in to the office on Thursday. Take it as my personal Holiday. Friday is my day off. According to the weather reports I’ve seen it is supposed to be pretty frickin’ miserable from Thursday on. Besides another four day weekend will do me some good.

Went over again in the same bloody spot in front of the gym - sodding snow - went home, burst into tears, had a paracetemol, got changed (carefully, due to large, recent hole in shin) into reflective lycra & went out for 9 miles as per plan. Great to run in, ___ing terrible to cycle in. Am v. grumpy & want a tricycle.

just in time! fingerless gloves finished for Florida cold spell....

I knit these just like you would do socks on circulars...it gets a little tricky around the thumb....
I combined some lovely sock yarn with some tilli tomas beaded....

After work yesterday I went in search of a new pair of gloves and a possible purchase of a new hoody. The hoody I’ve got now is fleece and usually lives in my office. Cold in there all the time it seems. And I want to leave it there. Just the right weight for that.

Why? We’re having a cold snap that could possibly set records in the Houston area. And apparently I’ve lost a pair of gloves that have been with me for over 10 years. Good ones too. Thinsulate lined. I’ve searched high and low for days now. I suspect that I lost them on the bus. Anyone with any sense would NOT have turned these in. Knitted on the outside, thinsulate on the inside. Funny thing with thinsulate, you need to be warm when you put it on. More than once I put those gloves on when my hands were cold and they stayed cold for a lonnnnnng time.

At any rate, I hit Meyerland last night, First I went to Steinmart. Surprised they had very little outerwear for men. I did find a couple of nice, reasonably priced picture frames. Not a total loss then. Hit Old Navy up next as I had seen a co-worker with a nice thick hoody from there. No dice. All very thin and flimsy.

Tried Academy next. Accosted a young man there with my very specific hoody needs. Zip front and light enough to fit under another coat. Not too expensive. Logo? Don’t really care but I’d rather not be a garish walking advert for some clothing company. I like to layer my warmth. In Houston it is a requirement for comfort. No dice. All pull overs. I hate those things. Quite surprised I was.

I did manage to find a nice pair of gloves. Probably overkill, but you never know. Waterproof, with traction spots on the palm and fingers. Thinsulate lined as well. SCORE!

Very hard time believing they didn’t have a hoody that met my requirements. Looked in the work clothing. Had some but most were canvas and more like parkas. Was about to give up, when I passed the hunting clothing. Let’s have a look. Found one nicely lined. Not too heavy, and zip front. Best of all 20 bucks! SCORE! Brazos Brand.

So apparently the hunters get all the cool (and warm) stuff around here. *grins*

Nicely done.

Went from there to the grocery store and had to stop for gas after. By the time I got home it was about nine and I was BUSHED. Made a couple of PB&J’s and some chips. Didn’t want to waste the time cooking anything. Besides I LOVE PB&J. Washed down with a glass of milk. Read for a while, surfed a little and finally gave up and went to bed.

Productive day. Yeah. *THUD!*

Nightmare!
Wasn't quite as cold as yesterday, and the run set off fairly well but preparations for it were not the usual.

Let me explain...No bottled water (can't stand the tap water around here) we have run out for probably the first time ever! We have 15 (count them) bottles of Lemonade accumulated, but no water. Had probs toileting (sorry TMI!) and a very poor meal last night to run on.

Three miles from home stomach started pushing, so slowed to a jog to try and settle it. This usually works with a bit of breathing, mind over matter etc. However a mile and a bit from base and I had to walk to settle my stomach. This worked and I then flew the hill top bit home!

All a learning curve.

This learning says Beefburgers are NOT good running food! To be fair, I'm not sure you could class the beefburgers we had as 'food' full stop...!

..ne'er mind.

I was tagged by Hevel and others

The idea is simple: Share ten things that make you happy and then tag ten friends so they, too can do this. Or tag less people if you want or not tag anyone at all :) And of course, you can do it even if you weren't tagged ;-)

1. Watching my kids learn new things.
2. Snuggling with kids on lazy mornings and before going to bed.
3. Running long and far
4. Spending time with friends online or in person.
5. Reading a good book.
6. Visiting new places.
7. Being creative (handcraft, cooking, baking, DIY, writing)
8. Making my friends or members of my family happy
9. Working in my garden and seeing the fruit of my labor :)
10. Shooting our bows with hubby

Tagging my whole flist here. 

crossposted here for myself and those interested :)


How many miles/km did you run this year?
1453K logged(at least a 100more actually)

2. What were your highest/lowest weekly mileage results?
lowest: zero
highest: ~200K

3. What was your best mileage month?
March

4. What was your longest run?
88K at a 12-hour race (there was a +90K hike-run, but more hike than run)

5. How many races did you enter in 2009? What were your best and worst race performances?
16 races. I ran 54:10 at 10K which is a PR and finishing my first 12-hour race with 88K was also nice. Worst? Maybe the trail ultra that I ended up hiking.

6. Do you have a favorite/memorable run from this year?
Definitely the ultras.

7. What was the craziest weather or other type of adverse conditions you endured on a run in 2008?
You mean 2009, right? ;-) We got an unexpected snowstorm during the second day etap of the Lake Balaton ultra, that was tough.

8. What were your goals for 2009? Did you achieve them?
I didn't really set goals. I wanted to finish my first multi-day event and do a 12-hour. I achieved those.

9. What are your goals for 2010?
Train wisely. Set new PRs at 10K, half-marathon and marathon distances that are closer to my abilities. Take part in a 24-hour event.

10. Do you have a favorite running-related quote you would like to share
Everything is within running distance; if you have the time.

 This weather is simply crazy! Before Xmas we had snow and temperatures dropped as low as -20degrees Celsius(-4F). Then just in time to ruin our white Christmas there came a sudden change and temps rocketed to even 15 degrees(60F). 

New Years Day was still unseasonably warm(and muddy), then the following night it started to snow and kept snowing all night. I was really happy we had snow again, but totally thought the whole thing would be gone in a day. Now, I was wrong. 

This morning, I looked out of the window and everything was still white and frozen, while the thermometer read -11degrees C (12F)

It seems winter decided to stay :) 

I had a hard time logging into my Live Journal account! Long, long time!

My goals for 2010:

More scrapbooking! More running! More low carb! More organization! More church! More shoes! Better health! And maybe a little more money?

I want to scrapbook OR read a good book every single day.

I'm ready for a good workout! Tomorrow after work - 2 miles. I know, that's like NOTHING, but it's a good start. I think it's going to feel good. I just hope it doesn't make me cough. I still can't believe I've been sick since Thanksgiving. I think this will help. Been feeling old and out of shape and ill lately - I need to get my edge back! Hahahaha... Been eating low carb since January 1st - yay.

Going to church on Sunday. Already ordered my first pair of shoes from shoedazzle.com - HA! Cannot wait to get them!

Went to Idaho for Christmas to visit the family and sooooooooooooooooooo loved it!! But on the other hand, SO GOOD to be back. Yes, I am DEFINITELY a Californian now, and so happy to be home. 75 degrees all week - woot!

Random thoughts... hope everyone is well!!!

It was C.O.L.D! this morning. -5 I think they said? Certainly felt like it. New tights were appreciated I can tell you.

The run itself felt hard work, but I think that was because I'm back to running at stupid o'clock in the morning and my body wasn't too taken with the idea! This is mainly as today is the first day back at work - Training day. Joy!

Pace came well in the end though through the run, just very cold!

Decided it would be a good idea to clean up my Gmail account. Don’t think anyone needs 4800 separate pieces of email even though the storage they give you (even) for a free account is ridiculous.

In retrospect however, maybe not such a good idea. They can’t make it too much harder to do. Just tried to do a display of a certain set of criteria. For example this could be a conversation between TexasT’s and Gmail:

TexasT’s: “Gmail! Show me a list of emails that have the text *LJ Comment* in the ‘from’ field.”

Gmail: “No problem TexasT’s. Here!” Gmail presents a list of [thousands] 50 at a time.

Yes I know, dammit. Thousands WTF!?!

TexasT’s: “Thanks! Now show me the oldest ones first!”

Gmail: “What?! What do you want that for? No can do, pal!”

TexasT’s: “I. Want. To. See. The. Oldest. Ones. First.”

Gmail: “Sorry, dude.”

TexasT’s: “Gmail! NOW!”

Gmail: “ The monkeys inside the machine are laughing at you! And I’m still not gonna do it...”

TexasT’s pounds the desktop cursing the goobers at google! “_()*(@*&@191=!!”



So I am doing this manually. Argh! I can produce a list of emails for the criteria above. But the little link that usually says “Oldest >>” is somewhat conspicuously absent... And once I started this I cannot stop! OCD much T’s?

Dammit. I have other stuff I need to be doing. Like setting up my scanner/copier BW laser printer. Or tidying up a bit or hanging pictures. Or any other myriad stuff but noooooooooooooooooooo... Must finish. Gmail...



Shit it’s cold out today 47F. Yeah right. Not outside my door! Glad I’ve got someplace warm to sit and look out at it. Looks like more of the same for tomorrow. And the next day. And the next.



Decided I’m gonna keep a sleep diary for a while. My pattern seems to be changing again. I’m sleeping better, no doubt about it. Just like a baseline.



Decided to have some of these cookies The RedHead sent down from Colorado. Had some with some green tea. Girl’s gotten much better. Or maybe her Mom helped. *grins* At any rate they’re good!



Found some smelly candles that were given to me by a visiting student from Scotland for Christmas a couple of years ago. Funny they’re all sea flavored. Put the mediterranean one on. Nice scent.



Downloaded a couple new Apps for the iPhone. A grocery list and one for ‘Getting things done“. Haven’t synced them yet. We’ll see how those work out. Sync ‘em later.



There are just some songs that need to be listened to as loudly as possible. Even if they hurt. Physically or emotionally. Can’t do that through my stereo since I moved out of the house any more. Thankfully I’ve got decent Headphones. Hell I’ve got enough wattage and good speakers, I could probably blow out half the windows in the building.

Highlights from my iPod

Madonna ~ Love don’t live here anymore
Lucinda Williams ~ Can’t let go
Glory of Byzance ~ Hymne des Cherubins
Steppenwolf ~ Magic Carpet Ride
Talking Heads ~ Burning Down the House
Soggy Bottom Boys ~ You’re in the jailhouse now
Jan Hammer ~ Theme from Miami Vice*I know right!?*
Queen ~ Seaside Rendezvous
The All American Rejects ~ Swing Swing
Mamas and the papas ~ California dreamin’




I’ve gotta go now ~ My Gmail account is mocking me...

*grins*

What was that whiney Coldplay song?
# no-body said it was ea-sy ...#
Getting up was quite hard today - mainly due to spending yesterday evening in the traditional Xmas pursuit of goggling slack-jawed at Miss Marple & the IT Crowd on telly until midnight while stuffing self with roast pots, parsnips, haggis, ice-cream & lotsa chocsa. I cannot really blame my Uncle Mike's damson wine as, although it does pack quite a punch, I only had 2 sherry-glasses full and I didn't have a hangover this morning (yes I do remember that far back!).
The gang were doing 10 miles & I was due for 14 so I ran to their place. Twelve Acre drive is v. v. dull but the upside is that you can quite safely trot along it while actually asleep as long as you remember where the junctions are and open an eye once a minute to check for discarded Xmas trees & other obstacles. No, you can. Yes I did.
Tried a new thing - pro-plus tablet at start of run. Noticed a new thing - running while desperate for a wee is v. unpleasant and make you go, "naargh aargh whimper naargh" etc.
Will see whether it helps at the end of a run but otherwise looks like caffeine isn't worth the trouble. Certainly didn't help me go faster as, like before, I was soon falling off the back of the pack (not a race but still dispiriting). Was less dispiriting once I told 'em to push on and thus soon they disappeared from view & I was free to go as slowly as I liked, viz. even slower. Seriously, I was having trouble overtaking grannies. Did feel much better (if not faster) once had found some bushes to nip behind!

Reviewing running log, this slowness is one or more of:

• Xmas & not sleeping enough (answer: sleep more)
• Giving blood mid-Dec (have bought some 1-a-day iron tabs from Tesco)
• reduction in training since October (well, I will be training more! This week did 38 miles which is more the usual thing).

Now have 85 miles of VLM training done, so hopefully should start to see improvements this month.