Book Review

Le Freak: An Upside Down Story of Family, Disco, and Destiny by Nile Rodgers
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It was a quick read and cool to see that he succeeded against all odds considering how rough his childhood was. I was a little disappointed that half of the book was about his childhood because I would have liked to have read more about the musicians he produced and more details about that. Granted, he was addicted to cocaine and alcohol during that period, but he did remember a lot of details about working with David Bowie & Madonna, so I would have liked to have heard more about the other artists.

I would love to know why he had a falling out with Oprah Winfrey. He indicated that they were really close friends at one point, but later had a falling out after she recommended a therapist for him during the height of his addiction. That was never explained.

The end of the book was a little unsatisfying because it left me hanging (I won't say why because it's a spoiler).

Overall, I'm glad I read it.

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Christmas Eve Eve

I haven't posted here in a while. I was sick for a couple of weeks, so just getting to feel well enough to get in my marathon training runs and get all my Christmas shopping done were major tasks. I'm happy to say that all my shopping was done on Sunday and Tuesday, nicely wrapped (for once) and no runs were missed. (Yes, there was a day where I had to do two runs in one day to make up for my sick days, but at least I did them all!)

I've missed strength training class for a couple of weeks because of not feeling that great.  I feel flabby and have gained a few pounds even though I'm eating the same. I tend to gain a few pounds during half marathon training and I've heard this is normal for marathon training as well, but I don't like it one bit. Oh well. I figure I've been exercising more than most people do (and way more than sick ones do), so next week I'll just add back some variety (strength training, yoga, and maybe try spinning) and see if that helps.

Today is a rest day for my 13 mile "long run" tomorrow morning, so I think I'll just have a little sushi for dinner and maybe do some laundry, continue to read my book, and make some candy.  (These bars are DELICIOUS!!) Oh, and I want to buy the Wild Flag album from Amazon (it's only $5!) and the most recent PJ Harvey one.  I also like the most recent Lykke Li album, so I may need to binge on the music purchasing tonight!

It doesn't really feel like Christmas, does it? Maybe it's just me. I deactivated my Facebook account a couple of weeks ago (on Monday it will be three weeks), so maybe that's why. I'm not seeing all those annoying holiday posts.

Speaking of deactivating Facebook, it's the best thing I could have done! I've tried it a couple of times in the past and only lasted a couple of days, but this time I don't even miss it. People keep asking me why I deactivated it. I guess it is odd for someone like me to abruptly deactivate Facebook.  I regularly posted status updates and photos, so it's not like I was a "lurker" on there. There are several reasons why I deactivated my account, but I don't really feel like I need (or want) to explain them to anyone. A lot of the reasons are personal and I don't feel like sharing other than saying that a daily irritant has now been erased from my life and it feels great.

Merry Christmas and enjoy the long weekend if you get one!

Kim

What do you do to relax?

Listen to music, read, watch Netflix, or get a massage.

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Do you prefer candy or popcorn at the movies?

If I get anything, it's popcorn, but I usually don't get anything unless I haven't eaten and I'm starving.

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An "Occupy" Right Up My Alley

The "occupy" this "occupy" that jokes are played out, but this made me chuckle. Maybe because it made no sense? The lights are pretty and I love Prosecco though!




Now I'm having a little sushi & sake. I've been sick all week and haven't been out with the exception of a low key event at TCHO Chocolate, so I need some sushi to celebrate the end of the week.

I should be carbo loading for my 12 mile run tomorrow, but I'm having mostly sashimi. Running fail.

Happy Friday!
Kim

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Do you like playing in the snow?

I've never played in the snow since I haven't been around it much, but I'd have to say that I wouldn't like it. I don't like being cold and wet.

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Christmas Wish List

Mizuno Running - Mizuno Women's Wave Precision 12 Running Shoes

I bought Women's Running magazine this weekend and this shoe was listed as "Most Comfortable" in the Winter Running shoes section. I like Mizunos because they're so light and not clunky on my feet and will need a new pair soon. I currently wear the Wave Riders, but this pair got rave reviews...and check out the cherry blossoms near the heel! I'm afraid to just buy them online without trying them on first, so I'm going to see if my local Fleet Feet has them in stock. WANT!

Marathon training is rolling along and today is the start of Week 7. I was a little derailed last week because of a major sore throat and lethargy which eventually turned into a full blown cold. I missed a 5 miler and a 3 miler, so I crazily made up both of those runs yesterday instead of doing cross training (5 miles in the morning and another 3 miles in the afternoon). 18 miles for Week 6....DONE!

This week the mileage starts increasing and I'm not going to have any single digit recovery runs on Saturdays, which is a little scary. This week I have two 3 milers, 6 miles, and then 12 miles on Saturday. I'm hoping to work in yoga on Friday and maybe a strength training session on Thursday. I have plans on Wednesday night (a free seminar at a chocolate factory where they teach you how to mix cocktails that pair with chocolate), so I hope my body cooperates and gets well!

Have a good week!

XOXO
Miss Kim

How much TV do you watch?

30 minutes a day or less. I don't have cable anymore & don't miss it!

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Turkey Trot!

Tomorrow is my first Turkey Trot ever!  I did an easy 4 mile run this morning before work to shake my legs out after a hard Boot Camp class last night.  Boot Camp didn't ever appeal to me (I don't respond to being yelled at when I'm exercising), but was open to trying it since my friend was teaching it.  I was afraid it would be too much cardio and not enough weights, but that wasn't the case at all.  The short cardio bursts between the weight routines made me feel like I was working harder than usual. 

Today I'm at work (blah), but I'm going to sneak out a little early.  I need to drive to my parents' house tonight (we're supposedly having crab for dinner...yum) so I'll be close to the start of the 10K Turkey Trot tomorrow.  The race doesn't start until 9AM, but I want to get there by 8:15AM to get my bib and warm up.  Let's hope I can get a PR!

What are you doing for Turkey Day? 

XOXO
Kim

Mystery Solved!

OK, this photo was taken at Noe Valley Tavern!  (See this post...)
You'll notice that right behind me (under the picture) is a toilet.  Unbelievably, the area where the men pee is right behind where everybody washes their hands.  Eww.

I'm so glad there wasn't a guy peeing in there when I came out of the restroom, but then again, it couldn't have made the evening much worse. Some guy who messaged me on Twitter about going out agreed to a date, rescheduled the date, and then didn't follow through. He showed up at this bar the day before we were scheduled to go out (but I already wrote it off as not happening because I hadn't heard from him) and had a drink with my friend and me. (We have a friend in common who was throwing a benefit for fire victims, so that's why we were all there.)  He then looked at his watch after about 10 minutes and said his girlfriend was meeting him.  Then the four of us had to sit through drinks until they left.

Girlfriend. Did you catch that? He had a girlfriend all along. At least I'm moving up. The last guy cancelled our date two hours before we were supposed to meet and I realized the next day that he was married.  (Thanks, pipl.com.)

Anyway, this was supposed to be a funny post about the bathroom!  :)

XOXO
Kim

Short Week!

I was going to say how glad I was that this was a short work week, but then I realized that's pretty obvious.  Who isn't happy with a short work week?

My weekend was good. Sunday was awesome because I had a deep tissue massage and some "me" time sweating out the toxins in the wet sauna and then went to see The Descendants. I'd highly recommend it! Besides the story being engaging and the acting top-notch, the Kauai scenes had me itching to go back there. It's not my favorite island because of all the driving you have to do to get around and the resulting traffic on the two-lane roads, but seeing Hanalei Bay made me nostalgic for a surfing trip I took there in November 2010. 

After the movie I headed to the gym for a yoga class. My marathon schedule dictated 60 minutes of cross-training, so I did 30 minutes of cardio (20 on the elliptical and 10 on the bike) and then took the yoga class.  I guess it did something because my obliques, back, and arms are all sore today. 

Saturday was a bit of a blur. I slept in a little (if you can call 7AM "sleeping in") and then did my 5 mile recovery run (through Fisherman's Wharf and down the Embarcadero). Then it was home for some Instant Netflix time on the Wii (watched my first episode of Breaking Bad and loved it) and a little reading. 

I'm currently reading Sideways on a Scooter by Miranda Kennedy. It's fascinating to read about what it's really like to live in India (from the point of view of an upper middle class American, that is), but reinforces my desire to never visit there. I can't even camp, so visiting India would be out of the question.

Later I went dancing, but didn't have that great of a time. It wasn't awful, but I'm just not big on dance music from the "90s, 00s, and 10s." I just stayed for 3 hours and then headed home.

My plans for this week start with looking over my marathon training schedule: 

Monday:  Rest
Tuesday:  Boot Camp (60 minutes)
Wednesday:  Run (4 miles easy)
Thursday:  Run (Turkey Trot 10K = 6.2 miles)
Friday:  Rest
Saturday:  Run (9 miles)
Sunday:  60 minutes Cross-Training
Total:  19.2 miles

I modified the original schedule, which had 18 miles for the week and no 6.2 mile run in the middle of the week.  I just tweaked it a little so the mileage wouldn't go too far over the 18 miles, but I could also do the required 9 miles on Saturday. 

Today I'm at work and then I'm getting together with my favorite college roomie and her family!  I got a surprise call from her last night and always have a good time together.  We'll probably go to dinner and wander around Fisherman's Wharf.  We're all big ice cream fans, so I'm sure we can fit that in even with the cold San Francisco weather today.

Have a good week!

XOXO
Kim

What are you looking forward to today?

My favorite college roommate (and her husband and kids) are in town for a couple of days, so I'm looking forward to seeing them tonight after I'm off work.

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Weekend...finally

I had yesterday off, so I shouldn't complain because my weekend got here earlier than it did for most people.  It was the usual...gel manicure, some blogging, some reading, some laundry, and then some sushi!

Oh, I did something else that I hadn't done in a long time....synched my iPhone AND backed up my hard drive, which I hadn't done in over a year.  (Hey, I forgot how to do it!)  I need to find a boyfriend who knows a lot about computers and stuff like that to help me.  Or just a boyfriend who doesn't know anything about computers would be fine, too.  :)

I hate doing posts without photos, so here's one of me, but I can't really figure out where I took it!  Based on the date I *think* it's Noe Valley Tavern when I was there for a benefit, but not sure.  I'm not in the habit of taking photos of myself like a lot of people do, but when I get that one day every few weeks where my hair, make-up, and outfit are all working, I like to document it.

Crap, where is this?

I also found my photos from the Nike Women's Half Marathon during the sync (which is good because I wanted to sob at the thought of losing the photo of me at the Nike wall* pointing at my name), so I can work on a post about that.  It almost seems anticlimactic a week after the event, but as long as I get it up before next year's lottery so you'll know how to avoid my mistakes, that's good enough.

Goals for me today are running 5 miles (recovery run) as soon as I can get up, laundering all my running clothes, baking banana bread, going to an opening at 941 Geary for Blek le Rat's new show, and then going to Club Vogue at the Cat Club.

Tomorrow's a little up in the air.  I have a massage at 11, but I need to swing by The Warfield before that and buy tickets for Adam Ant.  (Yes, THAT Adam Ant.  He's still around.)  I'll be downtown for the massage, so I'm thinking of going to a movie after the massage.  The new George Clooney one by the Sideways director called The Descendants looks good.  I also need to work in 60 minutes of cross training, so I'm thinking I might accomplish that with a yoga class at 5:30.

Have a good weekend and let me know if you did anything fun.

XOXO
Kim

*The photo came in handy yesterday.  The dry cleaner lost a blouse of mine and is still looking for it.  I realized that Nike wall photo was the only photo of me wearing it, so I went to them with my computer and showed them.  The reason they're still making such a valiant effort to find it is because I told them I found the receipt from May and I paid $135 plus tax.

The missing blouse and my big arm.  Eek.

I'm usually not in the habit of spending anywhere near that for a blouse, but it was for a first date.  It taught me a lesson because the guy cancelled the date 2 hours before it was supposed to happen.  That's the second time that's happened before a first date (Kim spends too much money on an outfit for a date that never happens), so next time I'm just wearing some old crap that I already have.

Anyway, the blouse was always a little too big anyway and cursed from that date, so I'd be just as happy if they don't find it as long as they refund the purchase price.  They said they'd "make it right," so we'll see.

XOXO (again).
Kim

Are you afraid of heights?

It really depends on the situation. I'm fine with roller coasters and ziplining, but the thought of skydiving terrifies me. Standing on the balcony on a higher floor freaks me out, too, and I'm not really thrilled when I'm stuck in a window seat on an airplane.

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Robyn Hitchcock

A few months ago I got really burnt out on going out dancing/clubbing and all the socializing involved.  I realized that I'm not really that much of a social animal.

Don't get me wrong.  I love going out and doing things that are social (seeing bands, dancing, restaurants, bars, etc.), but I realized that I really don't enjoy doing those things in large groups.  I'm more of a solo or small group kind of person and realized that I'll never change no matter how much I'd like to be one of those "popular" kids with tons of people around.  It's not really necessary or pleasurable for me to have to be friends with a huge clique.  It only took me 44 years to figure that out!

Anyway, I have been doing things besides working out and running!  I saw my friends Jennifer and Brian last night for the second time in two weeks.  Crazy.  We hadn't gone out together in ages, but we went to dinner and the Wild Flag show a couple of weeks ago and last night we went to Mercury Lounge before the Robyn Hitchcock show at Slim's.  

We were all interested in trying Mercury Lounge after seeing it reviewed on one of our favorite TV shows, Check, Please Bay Area.  I would probably go back again for Happy Hour since they had some good $5 appetizers that were large portions.  However, I'm not really sure about dinner.  The dishes were family style and we were told that the portions were large, which they weren't.  The food itself wasn't bad, but it wasn't memorable either.  My Cucumber Drop was tasty, but not on the Happy Hour menu ($9).  I'm wondering how their Sunday brunch would be since they have bottomless Mimosas or Bloody Marys.  You can't really go wrong with brunch, right?

Unfortunately, we got to Slim's after all the seats were taken.  Had I known that there would be tables downstairs (which I'd NEVER seen at Slim's), we would have arrived earlier.  In spite of that, we were there early enough to get situated in a good standing area where we weren't jostled.  (Usually when I'm at Slim's I'm in an area where I'm always in someone's way.)  

I hadn't seen Robyn Hitchcock in years and forgot how fantastic he is live!  He performed all of the Eye album and was just so great.  That album was recorded in San Francisco in 1988/1989, so it was really special having him coming back to San Francisco to perform it live.  He is just such a great storyteller and so witty!

Here's a video of him playing "Madonna of the Wasps" at a festival.  Last night it was just him with an acoustic guitar (with harmonica on some songs), but this will give you an idea of how great he is!

Today's my day off from work and supposed to be a training "rest" day.  I was going to go to yoga, but my legs are kind of tired this morning, so I might just do it later from one of my videos.  My training weeks start every Monday, so this is how this week (Training Week #3) is shaking out:

Monday:  Rest (I baked cookies after work!)

Tuesday:  60 minute Boot Camp + Run 3 miles

Wednesday:  Run 4 miles

Thursday:  Run 3 miles

Friday:  Rest?  Yoga?  Upper body weight workout + Yoga?

Saturday:  Run 5 miles

Sunday:  60 minutes Cross Training

Next week the mileage starts to climb again and I'm running a 10K Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving, so that should be fun.

I'm going to be better about updating here (and not being lazy about downloading photos from my iPhone), so thanks for reading! 

XOXO

Kim