Tri-ing.

So, as some of you know, Charlie and I are training for a triathlon on July 12th. We are doing the "sprint" triathlon which is a 400m swim, 11 mile bike ride and 2 mile run. One thing that I have learned from training so far: riding a bicycle is NOT the same as "cycling". Cycling is hard. Much harder than I imagined it was going to be. When I envisioned the cycling portion of the triathlon I envisioned zipping along at a good clip with minimal effort. A nice, Sunday afternoon ride. It is not like that at all. I admit that at one point I was somewhat prejudiced towards cyclists. Wheneven they would fly passed my as I was running on their little bicycles with their fancy shmancy cycling leotards on, I would think to myself, "Ooooh, you think you're so special. Anyone can ride a bike. Why don't you hop off the bike and do some real cardio." Yes, my inner voice is a very competitive 5 year old.

I must take that back now, except for the fancy shmancy biking gear. They do look somewhat ridiculous. But, like I said, I have gained a new respect for the sport. Yesterday I set out for a ten mile bike ride, but decided to go for 15 miles mid-ride. Let's get something straight- I'm not super speedy on the bike. I'm more like embarrassingly slow. I'm okay with that. I do not aspire to be a cyclist. I really don't have too much to say about the ride itself, except for the fact that it was really fun to explore some of the trails in the area. Aside from the fact that it was almost 100 degrees when I finished, it was really nice. I kept a pretty steady pace until the end, when I had to push really hard because some guy on his super-sweet bike with his swanky cycling gear flew by me without giving me any warning (a polite "on your left" is all I ask) and I was NOT going to let him get away with that. I kept up with him for a while and then decided to back off because I was exhausted decided not to stoop to his level.

I'm pretty excited about the triathlon, especially completing it with Charlie. I hope that he will not absolutely kill me in the swimming and biking so that we can finish somewhat close to each other. He has a special reason to try and beat me though, which I will save for a future post.

The only thing I'm really concerned about is what to wear. There is no way I'm shelling out over $100 for a tri-suit, so I'll have to figure something out with my running wardrobe.

In case you were wondering, I got everything straightened out at Bank of America. Amazingly, I was able to do what I need to do online. I love the internet so much.

Dear Bank of America,

Why is it that the people sitting next to me were able to successfully open an account, but I, a CITIZEN OF THIS COUNTRY, was not able to make a simple change to mine? You know, the account I signed up with using a valid drivers license and a valid social security number as identification. The one with a valid street address where I live. Why is it that you bent over backwards for the people sitting next to me, who had no valid documentation and were not even legal in the country, but could not accommodate a customer that has had a good banking record for the past 7 years? Why is that?

Vent over.

Super Delicious and Simple Granola Bars

This is a recipe that I have only slightly modified from here. I made a batch for my parents to take to the convention to snack on and they requested another batch to take to Israel. They are delicious and really easy to make!

Ingredients:

· 3/4 cup brown rice syrup

· 1/4 cup peanut butter

· 1.5 cups rolled oats

· 1/4 c ground flax (not pictured)

· 1/4 cup hulled pumpkin seeds

· 1/4 cup salted sunflower seeds

· 1/4 c sesame seeds (not pictured)

· 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut

· 1 t vanilla

· 2 T brown sugar

I was able to find everything at Central Market. The brown rice syrup is a little pricy (I think about $6), but I have made 2 1/2 batches of granola bars (makes about 16 bars a batch) from one jar. You could use Jiff peanut butter, but I think it would add too much sweetness.

To make:

Heat the brown rice syrup, peanut butter, vanilla and brown sugar over medium heat until boiling, stirring continuously.

Combine all of the dry ingredients and mix.

Once the liquid mixture has come to a boil, lower the heat to low and wait for the bubbles to go away. Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and mix.

Once everything is mixed, spoon the granola into a large pan. I found that is easy to scoop it in and then use a can or glass the flatten and level the granola. Once that's ready, put it in the refrigerator for 20 minutes or so.

Cut into squares. If you have a pizza cutter its really easy to use that to cut the bars. You can store these either in the fridge or at room temperature in a zip lock bag. They can be frozen too, to last longer. They last about 2 weeks at room temperature.

Enjoy!

Total Destruction

This morning I left an innocent brown paper bag on the sofa.

I went into the bedroom to get something.

And I came out to this.

Where's Lorelai?

There she is!

At least my sweet Chloe had nothing to do with this. See... she's just sitting there so nicely.

Wait a second...

There is definitely brown paper bag in her mouth. I guess it was a joint effort.

I've been at a conference for the past two days, so my house looks kind of like that paper bag. I'm going to leave the puppies to continue destroying the bag and go do dishes/laundry. At least they are entertained.

Got my hair cut.

This morning my hair looked like this (please keep in mind that this is slept in, no shower yet hair)...

yeah, yikes.

so i took this picture to the hair salon...

and came out with this...

What do you think?

I think I like it so far. Its a big change, but one that I was REALLY ready for. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I hate the Texas heat and cannot stand to dry my hair in the mornings anymore, so this should make that task a little easier. I haven't quite figured out what I'm going to do when I run (two little pigtails maybe?) but it'll be fine. Now if I could just get a nose job so I can have a cute, little, dainty nose like Ginnifer Goodwin. Just kidding. Kind of.