2007 - Lynn's Year in Review

As I sit here being held down on the couch by three adorable sleeping kitties, I thought it would be fun to take a walk down memory lane and reminisce about the year that was 2007.

January
I somehow managed to find my way home from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, during a huge ice storm that shut down much of Oklahoma, while battling a nasty case of the flu. Thanks to a box of Pepto Bismol and sheer determination (some might say borderline insanity), I managed to avoid being trapped for the weekend in the Chicago airport by procuring an alternate route home through Wichita and driving the rest of the way back to Bartlesville. Probably not the most brilliant thing I've ever done, but pulling into my driveway 16 hours after leaving the hotel in Cedar Rapids was one of the best feelings ever.

February
I celebrated my 34th birthday with my friends from Kansas City in Colorado. It was a wonderful weekend of catching up. Little did I know that this would not be my only trip to Colorado in 2007.



Also, thanks to some thoughtful gift giving on my sister's part, I was introduced to The Loopy Ewe, unleashing an obsession with sock yarn and hand knitted socks.

March
I must have done something right. I was pleasantly surprised with a promotion at work, mostly due to the project I was working on for the last half of 2006. The extra hours and travel were worth it.

April
The beautiful Kuota Kalibur came to live with me. On its third time out on the road, we had an unfortunate accident, which ended in me leaving much of the skin from my elbow on the pavement. I was bruised and battered, but unbroken, and the Kalibur was mostly unscathed, thanks to some quick thinking on my part to keep the bike from sliding along the pavement with me. Skin heals, carbon fiber doesn't.



May
I took a trip of a lifetime to visit Mary and Phil in Christchurch, New Zealand.





It was an amazing place with wonderful people. A side trip to Wellington, on the north island, to stay with a friend of a friend in Oklahoma, gave me the opportunity to spend some time with New Zealand Ironman athletes. A run through the hills (think, Lord of the Rings terrain), showed me that running up the one hill on the Bville trails once a week does not prepare you to run the hills of Wellington, New Zealand. It was fun and beautiful, but brutal. I also brought home a new hobby thanks to the ladies of the Christchurch Spinners and Weavers Guild and proved you could bring the base of a spinning wheel as a carry on on an airplane and not attract attention to yourself. All because I needed a new hobby that creates more yarn.



On a sad note, my buddy Stewart, who brought much joy to my life for 11 years, died from complications from diabetes. My house was way too quiet.



June
I made the first of three treks to Iowa for my cousin's wedding which took place on an unusually hot June day. And as if I needed even another hobby that adds more yarn to my stash, Linda and I experiment with dyeing yarn with Kool Aid and food coloring.



In late June, Xena talked me into heading down to the Bartlesville SPCA, where we adopted two 10-week old tortie kittens, Purl and Ashford. Xena doesn't remember being on board for the adoption, and lived in a corner under my desk for the next couple of weeks. The kittens quickly learned that the key to getting anything you want is to look and act cute (it's impossible for them NOT to look cute), and I quickly learned that knitting and fiber is not safe around the tortie terrors.



July
Oklahoma continued to suffer from weather extremes, and flooded in early July. While my house was safe from the high water, it definitely made getting around town difficult.



Trip number two to Iowa was for Mary and Phil's wedding which was held on an unusually comfortable late July day. Following the wedding, several of the wedding guests joined the bride and groom on RAGBRAI, the annual bike ride across Iowa. I was only able to join them for two days, but we had a great time.

August
It was a quick turnaround, but I headed back to Iowa for my annual trip to the Iowa State Fair. I've attend every fair except for one in my 34 years, and I couldn't miss it this year. It had all of my favorite attractions along with some new things to see. It's listed in the book 1000 Things to See Before You Die and it deserves the designation. If you haven't been to the Fair, add it to your list of places to visit. Tell them Lynn sent you!
Also, Xena decided that it's not necessary to hiss at the kittens every time she sees them.

September
What a blur! Since the beginning of 2007 I spent many hours training for Ironman Wisconsin, and Sept. 9 was the race day. It was a perfect day for a race, and considering my training was not as consistent as I had hoped it would be, plus the fact I had the plaque for the few days prior to the race, I was pretty happy with my time, finishing in 14 hours and 24 minutes.



Five days later, I was on an airplane to Denver to interview for a new job. Somehow, I managed to hide my exhaustion, and they offered me the job. The rest of September was spent getting my house ready to impress potential buyers.

October
Have you ever imagined what traveling with three cats in a car packed with many of your belongings for 10 hours would be like. I don't have to imagine, I got to live this wonderful experience, which surprisingly, wasn't nearly as bad as I had thought it would be. The kitties and I survived our drive, and quickly settled into our temporary apartment and collectively hoped that the house in Bville would sell quickly so we could get settled. The move also becomes the great equalizer with the cats, and Xena is seen snuggling with Ashford and even stayed there long enough so there is photographic documentation.



November
After about five weeks on the market, the house in Bartlesville sold, allowing me to start shopping for a new house in Denver.



I found the perfect townhouse for me...a brownstone with hardwood floors and a beautiful kitchen, that is right next to the Cherry Creek Reservoir so I can walk out the front door and hop on the running trails. It's also a short drive to work, and very close to a Chipotle, which will allow me to make up for the two and a half years I somehow managed to survive in a state without one. The only catch is that it won't be ready until the end of January. I know it will be worth the wait.



After spending Thanksgiving in Des Moines, where Linda and I dyed up another batch of sock yarn, I went back to Bville to pack up the house and get it ready for the new owners.


December
We officially closed on the Bville house on Dec. 3. A week later, a huge ice storm hits the entire Oklahoma. I shudder to think about what happened to the large, old trees that were all over the the yard, and am very thankful they're no longer my problem.
Even though I might freeze to death, I have been embracing the great things about living in Colorado. Skiing and snowshoeing has been so much fun, but I'm looking forward to the spring and summer sports.

Phew! It's been a year full of change, and I'm looking forward to what 2008 will bring. Happy New Year!

Just think of this as my Christmas letter...

Since the chances of me sending one out are zilch.
So much has happened since my last post, which was, um, before Thanksgiving. I'm a busy girl, what can I say?
On the house front, much progress has been made. I spent most of the week after Thanksgiving back in Bartlesville packing up my house and sending most of my belongings off in a big moving truck for a tour of Texas and Kansas before getting put in storage until that exciting day where I get to move into my new townhouse. The trip to Bartlesville was bittersweet. I'm so happy with my move so far, but I had a good life in Oklahoma. I had a fantastic job, amazing friends, and I loved my little house. I have some great memories. I know I'll go back to visit and I can't wait for my friends to come visit me in Colorado. We closed on the house in Bville on Dec. 3.
The best news I've received this month is my closing date for the new townhouse. Jan. 23 is my final walkthrough, and Jan. 30 is the big moving day. It's later than I had hoped, but it's a date, and that's all that matters! I try to stalk, I mean, drive by at least once a week to see the progress that's being made. They seem to be doing
more work on the inside than the out, but the outside is surrounded by scaffolding and the brick is stacked just waiting to be put on the side of the house.
With the first half of the house selling/buying completed, I really don't have anything to do but enjoy the Colorado winter. A couple of weeks ago, Gina and I went to a park in Boulder to test out our snowshoes.



It was a beautiful snowy day.



Then last weekend, we went up to Breckenridge to see if we remembered how to ski. It was fun, but it was COLD. The wind was blowing up the mountain. Brrr. I can't wait to go again! It's just so amazing to be able to be at my house, and two hours later be on the ski slopes. I love it!

I've been making some progress on my knitting projects (see my new progress bars on the right? Now, you can follow along at home!). I finished the Fiesta socks and they are so much fun to wear. I love the way they turned out.



And I also finished one of the Rainbow socks. The other one will get started after Christmas.



Over Thanksgiving, Linda and I dyed some more yarn. Here's a couple of our works of art. Can you tell I really liked the color of lemon lime Kool Aid? So pretty.





And I'll leave you with Purl. She's been feeling the holiday spirit lately.





Ashford says, "Bah Humbug!"

Brick!

The blog for the next month or two is mainly going to be about me obsessing about my house getting done. I stopped in earlier this week to see what progress had been made, and found that things looked very different.

One week ago:



Two days ago:



The funny thing was that there are 6 units in my building, and mine was the only one with the brick. None of the others had even been started. I like to think that the builder is working extra hard to get my house done on time. I didn't take any photos of the inside because the workers were there, but they had been some serious progress there too. The insulation and drywall was going up. Just keep thinking good weather thoughts for me so they can get it done quickly! The Bartlesville house is getting closer to closing. We just finished responding to the inspections, and we're set to close on Dec. 3. I'm excited to get that off of my plate.

I started knitting the Bellatrix socks using the skein of the Tempted Fiesta yarn that I helped create as the Tempted guest dyer. I love this pattern and it's really working well with the colors.



Stacy, the brains behind Tempted, let me know that Loops has requested Fiesta as an exclusive colorway. I'm so proud. I'm also so excited for Stacy and her big news. She's going to be a rock star in the knitting world.

It's supposed to be another beautiful weekend here in Denver, so I'm planning on getting out and about. I think the mountains are calling.

Sold!

Hooray! I got an offer on the house in Oklahoma last week, so things are moving along nicely. I'm still waiting on the inspections to be completed, but I'm being optimistic that there won't be too many issues and the sale will close with no issues. So that means I needed to find a place to live.
My goal was to find a place to move into shortly after the closing of the OK so we could simply move my things from one house into the other. I spent a couple of days last week with my wonderful realtor, Carol, who showed me many houses that would have been great places to live. Thursday night, I was certain that the first place we looked at was going to be my new home, but then we went to a new development of the cutest brownstone-style townhouses. So perfect. There were three options. Two were the model homes...they were beautifully decorated by professionals. The first one we looked at I swear was decorated just for me, but it was small. The second one was the perfect size, but the decor was so formal I would have had to change everything. the last option was still being built, and wouldn't be ready for when I really wanted to move in, but we decided to take a look. And it was just right. It was the same floorplan as the second one, but with an attached garage and a big extra storage space in the garage. AND the person who had picked out the interior features must have known I would be buying this house. It will have hardwood floors, cherry cabinets and granite countertops. So perfect. And to top it off, it's a short drive to work, and it's right next to the Cherry Creek Reservoir. I'll have a great place to run and bike right next to my house. It will probably mid-January (although I'm hoping it will be earlier), before I can move in and I can't wait.

A tour of the house...

The front door



The living room and entryway



The kitchen and pantry



This is the dining room and doors to the balcony. I'll have a great mountain view from my balcony for a couple of months. The new townhouses they're building across the street will ruin that view, but I'll enjoy it while I can.



The garage - I could fit three cars in here if I had three cars. I'll probably use it for storage instead. Or maybe a place to dye yarn?



Here's the rest of the 'hood. They will eventually have brick on the front. Hopefully soon.



The kitties are very excited to be moving into a new house. Purl decided to celebrate by learning how to knit while I was at work this afternoon. Unfortunately, she didn't really pick it up.

Hermione

Here's Hermione (Megan) modeling her sweater. I'm so excited with how it turned out!



And here's Hermione and the scary dinosaur trick or treating at Living History Farms.

I made it!

I've been in Denver for almost two weeks now and finally have time to blog about it. I've been rushing home from work every night since I arrived and knitting feverishly to try to get a sweater done for my niece Megan to wear as part of her Hermione costume. It was the House Sweater from the Charmed Knits book. I have realized that it probably wasn't a great idea to have such a tight deadline for my first real sweater (one that actually has to be made to fit someone), but in the end it all worked out. The sweater went in the mail yesterday and arrived in Des Moines today. I anxiously waited all day to hear if it actually fit, and a call from Megan set me at ease. She was wearing the sweater! Hooray. She and Noah were heading out to Living History Farms with my sister and my mom and dad. I can't wait to see photos. In the meantime, here's the photo I snapped before running the sweater to the post office.



So catching up. The kitties and I survived the 10 hour drive from Bartlesville to Denver on Oct. 13 in a car so packed, I barely fit. We were welcomed by a raging thunderstorm, and not the mountains like I had hoped. But it was well worth 2 day wait to see them. They are spectacular! Mary and Phil met me at the apartment just a few minutes after we arrived, and brought Chipotle! I can't think of a better welcome to Colorado. It was great to see them, and the kittens enjoyed Phil's kitten impersonation skills. Xena even came out to greet them.

Over the last two weeks, I've had the opportunity to see so many friends from different stages of my life. It's amazing how many people I know have ended up here. It's been so much fun catching up.

The new job has also been great. I am going to be one busy girl, but I'm excited for the challenge. Everyone has been great so far. This move has been really fun. The only thing that hasn't happened like I hoped is that the house still needs to sell. I'd love to be able to buy a place here by the end of the year, but that can't happen until the house in Bartlesville is sold. So, if you're thinking of moving to Bville, I know of a great place to live. :)

Also, back in Oklahoma, the Tulsa chapter of IABC, the professional organization I'm involved in, held their annual Bronze Quill Awards last night. I really wish I could have been there. Two projects I worked on for my last company won Awards of Excellence, and I was surprised to discover I was honored with the President's Award. It was very unexpected and it really means a lot to me that the Tulsa IABC president, my friend and former coworker, Shawna, felt I deserved the recognition. I would have loved to be there to accept the award. It's a really big honor.

And I can't believe I didn't blog about this sooner. I had the opportunity to spend a day before I left Oklahoma with my new friend Stacy, who is the creative force behind Tempted Yarns. Tempted hasn't been around for very long, but it she has done a great job getting her product out to all of the yarn crazed knitters out there. Her yarns are sold at a yarn shops in Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kentucky, and I'll be taking it upon myself to be her marketing person in Colorado. She was a wonderful hostess and let me play with her yarn and dyes. It was a blast! We even came up with a couple of new colorways for Tempted. My favorite was one we called Fiesta and she's been filling lots of orders for it. I'm so proud. I can't wait to knit something with my skein.



Of course I have to finish with a photo of the kitties. It must be the thin Colorado air, but Xena has been much more tolerant of the kittens, especially Ashford. I was in shock when this happened.



Notice the Harry Potter sweater that they're using as a bed?

I'm moving

Like I said in my last post. The last month has been a whirlwind. The week before Ironman, I was approached about a new job opportunity. I wasn't looking for a new job. I was actually quite happy with the one I had, aside from where it was located. But the more I heard about the new position...it's a growing company, the position is new, the department is led by someone I knew from a previous job and really admire...the more interested I became. And to top it all off, the job is in Denver.
I've always loved visiting Colorado, and always thought how lucky people who lived there were, but for some reason, I just never thought I would have an opportunity to live there. But here was my chance. So, four days after Ironman, I managed to get myself to Denver and spend a day interviewing for the job. The next week, they made their offer and I accepted. I'm going to be the director of corporate communications for this company. I'll be developing an employee communications program along with providing communications support for a change program they're working on. It is a fantastic opportunity for me and I can't wait to get started!
My last day at my job here was Friday, and I'm taking this week off to relax a bit and determine what I need to take with me. It all has to fit in the Xterra. On Saturday, the three kitties and I will set off on our 10 hour drive west (that's the part I'm really not looking forward to). We'll be living in temporary housing until the house here sells and I can buy something in Denver. Hopefully, that will all fall into place quickly.
So, I have had some productive knitting time the last couple of days. I finished the Tulips sweater.



And I'm determined to finish a pair of socks before I leave, but the sock will be put to the side once the supplies for a Harry Potter sweater arrive in the mail. My niece is going to be Hermione for Halloween, so she needs her house sweater. This will be my first try at a non-baby sweater, so we'll see what happens.

The kitties are not very excited about all of the move activity that has been taking place. Xena really doesn't appreciate being locked in a room with the kittens every time someone comes to look at the house. It is so beneath her. She would prefer staying in the cat cave. So much more dignified.



And Purl is still able to vamp for the camera even with her sister squishing her. Nothing can stop the cute.

Ironman Wisconsin Race Report

I can't believe it's been two weeks since Ironman Wisconsin. It seems like ages ago. Why? Well, because in between finishing Ironman and today, I have interviewed for a job, been offered a job, accepted the job and resigned from my current job. I'm in the midst of a whirlwind of cleaning and sorting so I can get my house up for sale. The sign goes in the yard tomorrow morning. More about that in a later post.
So back to Ironman. Sunday morning my alarm went off at 4 a.m. Way too dark and early for any normal person to be awake. But I suppose I wasn't a normal person that morning. I was going to do an Ironman, and that's the time you get up when you're doing Ironman. I got dressed, brushed my teeth, took some Mucinex and hoped it would do it's job, and double checked that I had everything I needed for my special needs bags. Then, I met the gang from Kansas City downstairs for the walk to the start line. It was a beautiful morning and the weather forecast for the day was perfect. We dropped off our special needs bags and headed down to the convention center to check our bikes one last time, take care of any last minute business, and get a few photos before putting on our wetsuits and heading down to the water for the race start.
Ironman Wisconsin is centered around a convention center next to the lake where we swim. The transition areas are inside the convention center in the conference rooms, and the bike staging area is on the top level of the parking garage. To get down to the water we had to walk down the helix on the parking garage. It was packed with athletes. It takes a lot of coordination to get 2,500 athletes into the water for a 7 a.m. start. We were like cattle.
I managed to stick with most of the KC crew, so once we got in the water we found a fairly non-threatening spot close to the shore. We ended up treading water for about 10 minutes before the start. Thank goodness for wetsuits! It's an amazing view to look toward the shore and see the crowds that have come out to watch the race start. The convention center is a huge facility with a bike path that runs between it and the water. People were packed along the length of the center. You could see them on the bike path and on all levels of the parking structure. It was incredible. So much energy.
As the start of the race got closer, Mike Reiley, the voice of Ironman, started counting us down. At 7 a.m. the cannon went off and the played It's a Beautiful Day by U2, an Ironman tradition. I waited just a few seconds so I could hear a little bit of the song. I've always loved the song, but I like it even more since it is associated with Ironman. It give me chills.
Considering that I didn't swim nearly enough during my training, it was a pretty good swim. I felt long and comfortable in the water. I did get kicked in the face early on in the swim, which cause my eye to swell a bit, which made my goggles tight. It got pretty uncomfortable toward the end of the swim. But other than that it was great. However, I was not sad when it was over. I got out of the water in 1:31, about 12 minutes slower than 2004, but still respectable for me.
I got out of the water, was helped out of my wetsuit by the Peelers, and ran up the helix to the first transition. My legs had started to cramp a bit in the swim, so it was a little painful to run.
Once I got to T1, a wonderful volunteer helped me get into my cycling clothes. Another volunteer helped me with sunscreen and I headed out to pick up my bike. The entrance to the bike area is at the opposite end of the parking structure from where you bike out. My bike was right by the bike exit so I had a long run. On the way, my parents had found a great spot to watch the transition. I found my bike, hopped on and headed down the helix to start the 112 mile bike. The roads on the course are for the most part, very good. However, the first part, as you ride out of Madison, is extremely bumpy. I saw a lot of water bottles and various supplies laying on the side of the road. Part of my race strategy is to stay on a liquid diet for the ride. I have a special cocktail of sports nutrition drinks mixed up in large water bottles. Each bottle contains 800 calories, so I estimated that I would need 3 bottles for the bike. I carried two on the water bottle carrier on the back of my seat, and put one in my special needs bag. I set my watch to beep every 15 minutes to remind me to take a drink. Not the tastiest thing ever, but since it's orange flavored, I try to pretend that it's a dreamcicle. Not so much. Since this is a thick drink, it is pretty heavy. And two bottles are really heavy. So, about 5 miles into the ride, I felt something funny hitting the backs of my legs. I reached down and felt my water bottle carrier. The bolts that attach it to my bike seat had shaken loose, and couldn't support the weight of my bottles. This was a problem because my water bottles were now parallel to the ground pointing straight back like torpedoes. I was concerned that they'd become torpedoes and fly off my bike if I left it like that and went over too many more bumps. I didn't want to jeopardize any of the other athlete's safety with torpedo water bottles, plus I needed what was in the bottles to help me make it through the day. I stopped once and borrowed a tool to try to tighten the bolts, but after a few more miles it came loose again. Now, I faced a dilemma. What to do. I couldn't leave them in the holders, but I couldn't not carry them. Fortunately, the jersey I chose to wear for the bike had deep pockets, so I pulled them out of the holder and stuck them in the pockets. Not the most comfortable, or aerodynamic, but it worked. The rest of the bike was uneventful. At the halfway point the race leader passed me. But they gave the pros a 10 minute head start, so I'm sure if we had started at the same time he wouldn't have even been close to me. HA!
It was a gorgeous day except for a bit of a headwind that got stronger as the day went on. I saw friends from Tulsa and Kansas City, along with my parents at various points in the race. It was awesome! It's so nice to see a familiar face. Especially when you're climbing a nasty hill. Wisconsin is a beautiful bike course that takes you through some scenic Wisconsin farmland. For those of you who have never been to Wisconsin, don't let anyone EVER tell you Wisconsin is flat. This course is always changing with a lot of hills, which I guess keeps it interesting, but it wears you down. It would be nice to have a larger flat section.
Needless to say, I was happy to start the ride back toward Madison. It seemed to take much longer than it took to ride the same section the other direction. Ugh! I played leap frog with another girl in my age group. It seemed like when I had a burst of energy she was moving slow, and when I was slowing down, she would have a burst of energy. We joked that we were sharing the same pool of energy. It was great to see the convention center! I rode to the top of the helix, and found my parents at the top. They were proving to be great Ironfans! I happily handed my bike over to the volunteers to take back to the racks. I grabbed my transition bag and headed to the changing room. I did another full change into clean clothes, put on my running shoes, got another layer of sunscreen and started out on the run. My parents had found their way over to the run start. I also saw some of the KC crew. As I was running out to start my marathon, the race winner was crossing the finish line. Wow. I can't even imagine how it would feel to be that fast. They were playing Ozzy Osbourne's Ironman as he crossed. I pretended that they played the song to inspire me.
Up until this point, the breathing issues I had been having really didn't bother me, but as I was running, I started to feel more fatigued than I normally would have felt if I had been healthy leading up to the race. But I was determined to cross the finish line, and I really wanted to finish in less than 15 hours. I felt like I was running pretty well for the first half. It was starting to cool off toward the last part of the first half, so I started to take the chicken broth that is offered at the aid stations along the way. I have heard people wax poetically about the Ironman chicken broth and scoffed at them, thinking there is no way chicken broth could be that good. Now I understand. The chicken broth was magical. It was giving me the salt that my body needed, plus it was keeping warm and it is yummy! I looked forward to picking up my little styrofoam cup at every station. I'm drooling just thinking about it. On the run, I managed to see a lot of my friends from Tulsa and Kansas City who were also racing. Jen, from Tulsa, breezed by me on my first lap (her second) on her way to win the 30-34 age group. The girl is amazing! I wished I could catch up with some of them so I'd have someone to talk with, but unfortunately, they were moving faster than me.
The marathon is a 2 loop course, so after 13 you're running like you're about to cross the finish line. And because I'm slow, there are a lot of people finishing the race as I came to the halfway point of the run. To make it worse, you have to run down the road to the finish line, and halfway there, you are directed around a coneto turn around and take you back for the 2nd half of the course. Ugh. That takes a lot of mental energy. But the crowds do help keep spirits high.
The second half was similar to the first, just a bit slower. The bad thing about Ironman Wisconsin is that miles approx. 19-22 is on a trail. It's really pretty when it's light out, but as it gets darker, there are less people on the course, and it gets really lonely. That was one of the main differences I noticed between this year and 2004. I was about an hour slower, so the lack of light in certain places made it feel a lot different. It was also a lot colder this year.
As I got to the last few miles, my legs were pretty sore, but the excitement to get across the finish line kept me moving forward. I kept grabbing nutrition at each aid stations to keep me moving. I didn't want to take anything for granted! I was elated when I could see the Wisconsin Capitol building. That meant the end was near. I could start to hear Mike Reilly, still keeping the excitement going at the finish line and announcing everyone as they crossed the finish line. At the last aid station, I took a moment to primp so I would look good in the finishers photo, and headed toward the finish. There were crowds lined up all around the capitol. I saw my parents and started down the final stretch toward the finish line. I crossed the line at 9:24 p.m. for a finish time of 14 hours, 24 minutes and 30 seconds. The best part about it? I actually had fun. I was uncertain about how I'd feel, and even though I wasn't at my best and I didn't beat my 2004 time, I was happy to be there.
Next up? Not an Ironman. I'm looking forward to training for a half Ironman and possibly a marathon.

Almost Perfect

It has been a whirlwind since I arrived in Madison on Thursday. Between registering for the race, spending a small fortune on Ironman merchandise, eating, driving the bike course, packing my transition bags for the race, reevaluating what I put in my transition bags, eating, getting in a few short quick workouts, eating and getting my bike and transition bags checking in this morning, there hasn't been a lot of free time.
After a slight delay in my flight from Chicago to Madison, I made it to Madison where my friend Carolyn picked me up at the airport. She had made it here safely, with my bike and some of my gear on Wednesday. We stopped by my hotel to check in, and then headed to The Great Dane, a local favorite restaurant for a meal. We were both starving! Then, we made our way over to the Expo to check out the Ironman merchandise. My plan to not buy anything failed miserably when I saw this year's jersey and shorts. They were too cool to pass up!
Friday morning, I met up with some of the KC gang for a quick swim in Lake Mendota and a short run. The water was super choppy, so I had no interest in staying out there very long. I was told by several people that there was a front passing through, and as soon as it passed the water would be like glass. I hoped they were telling me the truth. After our workout we went to register. We had to sign our lives away, get weighed and they provided us with our race numbers, transition and special needs bags along with a cool Ironman backpack, a license plate holder and the commemorative poster. That afternoon, we piled in a car and drove the bike course. It was a good refresher. I remembered quite a bit of the course, but there were a few spots I was glad I saw again. Now I just need to remember where they fall during the race so I make sure I have my gears in the right position. Friday night, we went to the all you can eat pasta.
Today was the really busy day. We got up for a short bike ride to make sure the race wheels were working properly. I was really proud of myself for being able to get the back wheel off and on all by myself in less than 10 minutes. I wasn't able to get the gears adjusted properly though so that meant a trip to the mechanic at the bike check in. After the ride, I walked over to Einstein Brothers Bagels to grab some breakfast and to pick up a bagel for race morning. While I waited for my parents to arrive, I finished packing my transition bags, trying to mentally go through everything I need for the race tomorrow. Hopefully, I didn't forget anything. Mom and Dad made it to the hotel just as I was finishing up, so we made the walk to check in my bike.
After waiting in line for 45 minutes to get my gears adjusted, the rest of the check in went quickly. We grabbed lunch, and then headed to Jefferson, Wisc. to check out the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival (It can't all be about triathlon, right?). There were lots of fun things to look at and be inspired by for my post-Ironman life.
We just got back from dinner with the gang from Tulsa. I'll be doing one last run through of all of my gear and getting ready for bed soon. The alarm will be going off at 4 a.m. Ugh. It's the start of a long, long day.
So, why Almost Perfect? The weather here in Madison is amazing. Today was a high of 76 and at 6:30, it was just amazing. It feels like the beginning of fall. The lake was like glass. Gorgeous! More of the same is predicted for tomorrow. Perfection! I love racing in this type of weather. Everything else has come together without a hitch, except for me. I've been fighting a cold since the beginning of this week, and the last couple of days I've felt really lethargic and congested. My short run on Thursday should have been easy, but I was really short of breath. And I haven't had a decent night of sleep since I've been here because I wake myself up with coughing fits. I've been taking some decongestants, which have helped a bit, but I'm not back to full speed yet. I'm not so concerned about the swim and the bike, but I have a feeling the run is going to hurt more than I expect. Basically, I'm hoping for a miraculous overnight recovery.
So, that's it. Time to do the last minute check of everything so I can get to bed. Hopefully, my next post will be written by an Ironman times 2.

Movin' on up

I brought home a surprise for the kitties this weekend and while it doesn't come close to matching the decor, it has been a big hit. Xena has made herself at home in the penthouse, but the downstairs neighbors have been a bit pesky. It's unfortunate she wasn't able to choose her neighbors.



Only 2 days until I leave for Ironman. I was finally able to get back in the pool today, so I was able to confirm that I can still swim. I won't be breaking any speed records in the water, but at this point I'm fine with surviving. Now, i just need to finish my laundry and figure out everything I need to take with me. So far, the weather report is 68 degrees for the high, partly cloudy with a slight chance of rain. Minus the rain, it sounds like a perfect day for a race. I'll be prepared for every type of weather, though. The weather in Madison can be a bit unpredictable in September. When I did the race in 2004, it was 75 degrees every day leading up to the race, and 95 degrees and sunny on race day. Last year, it was 40 degrees and raining. I'd prefer the 95 degrees. I'm a fair weather triathlete.

In fibery news, the mailman brought me this today.



It's superwash merino in the Summer Garden colorway from The Sweet Sheep Fiber Club. I love it. And it's the perfect color for a baby sweater for a baby girl. Good thing I know so many people having baby girls this winter.

I made progress over the weekend on my first baby surprise jacket, but unfortunately I ran out of yarn. So now I have to try to recreate this colorway so I can spin more up and finish the cutest baby sweater ever. Purl doesn't like me calling something other than her the cutest ever, so she tried to outcute it.



The next couple of weekends are going to be a bit busy, so it will be a while before I am able to find time to dye and spin the fiber. I need to dig through the stash to see what wants to be knitted into a baby sweater next. I might have to try some of the sock yarn from the State Fair dye day.

And as always...KITTENS!

Back to back


Front to front


Back


Front


Belly!

One Week

One week from today, I'll be leaving for my Ironman in Madison, Wisconsin. Thankfully, due to the crazy traveling I did last year for work, I was able to use my frequent flyer points to buy a plane ticket. I was so dreading that drive. Especially the drive home. Now, I'll be traveling in style...well, as in style as you can get when flying United.
Due to my extreme hatred and mistrust of United, my bike will be hitching a ride with my friend Carolyn from Tulsa. I barely trust them to get me there (if they can just get me to Chicago, I'll be able to rent a car and drive from there), so I have absolutely no confidence that they'd actually get my bike there. So, I'll be dropping my trusty Kuota off at her house on Monday so she can start her journey north on Tuesday. It's going to be a busy weekend getting everything ready along with completing my last bit o training. The long-term weather reports are looking good for Madison right now, but as the people who raced there last year discovered, it can turn from perfect to horrible without much warning. I'm hoping for perfect this year, but I'll be prepared for horrible. That means a very full suitcase. I think I'll be taking two. One for my triathlon gear, and the other for clothes.
The training has been good the last couple of weeks. Ashford helped get me through an indoor bike ride:



And my friends Andrea, Megan, Jenn and Tracy have help get me through my long runs. It has made the long runs go by so much faster and they're much more fun. They've taken shifts so I have had the motivation to keep going. It's been great to have them be a part of my training, and because of them, I've had a several great runs to lead up to Ironman

This afternoon, race numbers were posted. I'm #2180, so I guess they're expecting me to show up and race. It sounds like a lucky number to me.

But enough about the Ironman. This last weekend, I finished spinning another one of the rovings that Linda and I dyed. If I were the type of person to jump up and down clapping and squealing over a skein of yarn, this would be the skein. It's such a beautiful rainbow, and I'm impressed with how well I was able to keep it so even. Hooray!



I also cast on for the Baby Surprise Jacket by Elizabeth Zimmermann with the orange and purple yarn I spun from the roving Linda and I dyed. It is the first time I've dyed, spun and knitted the yarn. It's extremely satisying. I had to try out this pattern by EZ. One, because it is super cute, and also because of her last name. I doubt we're related (her last name is spelled wrong!), but EZ is a bit of a superstar in the knitting world. I just hope I have enough of the yarn. If not, I'm going to have to try to remember what I used to get the colors.


And it can't be a blog post without cute kitten photos.

Xena and her entourage:


Psst, come here...yeah, you. Let me tell you something...


How can you resist this face?