Memorable Moments of 2006
As in previous years, (2005, 2004 and 2002) I’ve assembled my list of this year’s memorable moments … now with pictures!
| January | February |
| The post-Christmas Whistler vacation with Mom, Dad, Alli and Matt | Watching the Canadian women’s Olympic hockey team with the gold medal on a big screen in Whistler |
 |
 |
| March | April |
| Finally learning how to pack light and not having to check any baggage for Spring Break | Enjoying all the fresh, organic produce in my new CSA boxes |
 |
 |
| May | June |
| Finishing my first half marathon and visiting NYC with Laura | Being Angie’s maid of honour in her wedding |
 |
 |
| July | August |
| Spending Canada Day weekend at the cottage | Visiting Italy with my mom, sister, aunt and uncle |
 |
 |
| September | October |
| Cruising to Greek Islands with my mom, aunt and uncle | Canadian Thanksgiving in Victoria and Vancouver with Matt and my family |
 |
 |
| November | December |
| Finishing the Seattle half marathon in under 2 hours | Spending the Christmas season with family and friends |
 |
 |
Christmas Season
This weekend the Christmas season arrived in Cecilia-land.
It all started yesterday when I braved the holiday crowds and went shopping at University Village. It wasn’t an overly sucessful trip shopping-wise (I only managed to spend $5.31 in picking up two small gifts for Matt’s niece and nephew) but I spent a bunch of time looking around and thinking about what I might get for different people on my list. I’ll have to do most of my shopping in Ottawa and Toronto when I get home.
I did not run the Jingle Bell Run 5K this morning. I would have liked to, especially since the weather was really nice this morning, but I figured that since the half-marathon was only 2 weeks ago it was too soon to be racing again. I did an easy 3 mile run instead brining my weekly mileage up to a light 10 miles.
This afternoon was my work holiday party. We had a potluck at one of my co-workers homes. I made this Wild Rice Cranberry Pecan salad. It was quite yummy and even a little festive. With the spread that we put out I may never need to eat again. But what’s Christmas without a little indulgence?
The last half marathon post, I promise
It has been one week since the Seattle half marathon. I didn’t know it at the time but running legend Joan Benoit Samuelson was the fourth place woman in the half marathon. For those of you non sports buffs, she was the winner of the first ever women’s Olympic marathon in 1984. I’m honoured to have run in the same race as her. Very cool.
Final placement statistics
Gun time: 2:02:24
Chip time: 1:59:56
Place overall: 1958/6015 (67 percentile)
Place females: 722/3476 (79 percentile)
Place F25-29: 145/685 (78 percentile)
Post-race recovery
I took a full seven days off after the race. I was pretty sore on Sunday night and Monday but by Tuesday evening the soreness was gone. The only exercise I got last week was 5 one-way 3.5 km trips walking to or from school. We had a week of snow and below freezing temperatures so the buses were not running consistently and I chose to walk. The walking actually felt pretty good and probably stopped me from going totally stir crazy. This morning I awoke to clear skies and cool temperatures. Perfect weather for a run. I did an easy 5 miles and although nothing hurt my legs did feel a little heavy.
The plan for the rest of 2006
Well I’m in Seattle for two more weeks before I head home for Christmas. Over that time I’d like to do a few easy runs and some cross training. Nothing too intense though. I’d also like to do a bit of weight training. I really think I have to work on my leg strength in preparation for the marathon. Usually my legs give out before my lungs so I have to work on that. Once I’m on Christmas vacation all bets will be off in terms of running. While I’m in Ottawa I’ll be able to run on my parents’ treadmill but the rest of the time I’ll probably just relax. I don’t think I’m prepared to run outdoors in Ontario but you never know, maybe the weather won’t be too bad.
What’s on my fridge?
This afternoon I decided to get crafty and turn my two half marathon medals into fridge magnets. All it took was some super glue, an old magnet with the 2005 Seattle Storm regular season schedule on it and a pair of scissors. Now I can proudly display my medals without having to hang them by their ribbons. I liked how they looked on the fridge so much that I decided to take a picture. I know it seems like a silly thing to do but I think it’s sort of interesting. Plus I wanted to share the collection of flag magnets my mother has made me for each country I’ve visited. If you visit the flickr photo page there is a note for each item on the fridge.
