Curtains Close on 2010

Despite how packed my schedule felt this summer, fall turned out to be just as cluttered with activity between off-season outrigger workout commitments and paralegal school.  I took two classes this quarter, Business Law and Civil Litigation (got A's in both - yay!) and am signed up for two more starting next week, Legal Writing and Real Estate Law.  Should be fun...?

I have been getting up consistently at 5:30 AM to hit the gym.  One year ago I would have balked at that idea, but oddly enough it hasn't been nearly as rough as I thought it would be.  A big part of it, I think, is doing it every day.  Plus, the results are addicting!

Update on the pull-up goal: just about there.  I had set the goal of 3 pull-ups for myself by Christmas, and I'm proud of what I have done.  (You can see a bit of the success at the tail end of my most recent video.)  At the end of the paddling season, despite how uber strong I believed myself to be, I could not even do ONE measly little pull-up. I started by doing negatives, that is, jumping up to the bar then lowering myself down slowly.  That eventually made it possible for me to do 1.  I then invested in a pull-up bar for the house, which soon resulted in a squeaking, squealing, painful but legit 2 on a good day.  As of now, I can do what I am calling 3 "cheater" pull-ups - that is, I don't quite go ALL the way down on the return, but hey - I'm happy with the progress so far!  In the meantime my maximum bench press went up 15 lbs as well, so hurray for hard work paying off!  I'm so grateful for the encouragement of my teammates, who are superstars.

I ran my first ever half marathon.  It wasn't exactly on my bucket list, but you can put a check next to it anyway!  (In case you are wondering, a full marathon is also NOT on said list.)  My goal was to finish in 2 hours, and I was pretty dang close with a finishing time of 2:00:44.  My Dad ran it with me (always my hero!) and the weather could not have been more beautiful.  The course was along the Silver Strand from Coronado to Imperial Beach; the ocean was literally glittering in the November sunlight, not a cloud in the sky.

I am also now an honored godmother to baby Katie, daughter of my beloved BFF Becca and her studly hubby Luis.  She was baptized the day after Christmas (pictured) and it was a wonderful thing to witness.  Christmas was the usual mayhem of climbing the gift mountain with Chris' family.  There was a ton of food and many laughs.  It is always a delight to see the clan and my little niece, Kylie, who recently turned 1, and is developing an addictively spunky personality.  I was doted upon generously, though I did receive one gift that was NOT on my list: poison oak!  It has been something of a struggle dealing with that for the past week, but I think the steroids are helping.  Just in time for a New Years Resolution 10k tomorrow.  Yay!

Speaking of resolutions, this is the first year in a very long time where I have one.  I am going to try and intentionally save a chunk of our household income every month consistently this year.  I have kind of been doing that anyway, but I was not keeping track of it and I think I can do more than what I originally thought.  We'll see how that goes.

Overall I'm excited to see what 2011 has to offer.  My video making and blogging will hopefully fall back into routine, as well as maybe my cooking experiments and writing.  (Yes, I WILL finish my NaNo story!)  In the meantime, I love you all and hope you have a fantastic New Years!

NaNoWriMo 2010

It was fun, it was ridiculous, it was so rewarding.

What am I talking about? National Novel Writing Month, which I participated in once again and am again victorious, by the hair on my chinny-chin-chin.  It was a much busier month for me than last year, and I really had to crank at the end.  Not only did I bring my laptop along with me over the Thanksgiving holiday, I stayed up almost exactly until midnight last night making sure my words were up to snuff. 

 And now, I have half a story.

 Half? What? Yeah, that’s what happens sometimes.  I got going and realized the novel had a life of its own, taking me crazy places I had not anticipated, and am still a wee bit unsure of where exactly they will lead.

I am, however, very proud of what I have, and am even confident enough to share the first part with whoever would like a sneak peak.  (Just let me know and I will email it to you.)  The title is under construction, though currently it is called "The Scent of Sincerity" and is a fantasy story set both in modern day and a fictional world (think Narnia / Harry Potter) about a young girl named Althea who can smell lies.

Thank you all for your loving support and enthusiastic feedback!  It is much appreciated.