the time has come

i'm finally going to utah to pick up this adorable little lady!

obviously, i hella love oakland.

this marathon was amazing!
it was hard, i've never run a marathon with hills like this one. i love the hills, they're my favorite part, but they do wear me out, leaving little in the tank for the 16 miles i have to get through once the hills are done.

wait, i should start from the beginning.
i stayed at lovely leilani's place in alameda saturday night, had a glorious dinner of trader joe's black bean enchiladas, read the latest 'O' magazine, hung out with the fish, enjoyed some cable tv, and went to bed earlyish.
up at 5:30am to my phone alarm on the highest volume setting (sorry neighbors).
out of the house at 5:50am, way too early, but i worry about being on time.
couldn't decide if i should bus or bike to the start, opted for bike, which meant a scary death ride through the tunnel (on the road, not the bike path, because the bike path is even scarier), a nice little pre-race workout.
go to my office to get changed/ready...and to the start line nearly an hour before the race starts.
it was so organized, there were arrows on the ground directing you sweats check and the starting lines, clearly marked pace groups, helpful information folks everywhere, plenty of toilets, and the makings of a great post-race celebration (hello two free beers for every runner!).
7:15am - national anthem
7:25am - high five mr. cooper. RUDE people around me commented "mr. cooper, that's the best we get in oakland?" um hello, mr. cooper is AWESOME! dumb lady next to me is worse though "yeah, right, couldn't they get, like, mark mcgwire?" um. you're dumb.
7:32am - race start!
7:35am - opt to pass on the oaksterdam first aid station
8:25am - rockridge, see my first personal supporters, dave from work and his darling daughters. yay!
8:30am - mile 5, start the serious hills. woah. sleepy kids are banging on pots and pans, the ricola guy and two of his friends are playing their horns.
9:30am - mile 10, finish the serious hills. woah. woah. mormon temple looks empty, church must be over.
9:32am - almost fall trying to take at least one cool picture (if it gets posted to the website i'll share it, finger crossed!!).
9:45am - mile 11.5, people are shouting "welcome to fruitvale!"
10:00am - mile 13, signs change from english to spanish, i don't know what they say, but i love them just the same.
10:10am - mile 14, i look over and see my buddy byron running next to me! yay! i need this right about now.
10:35 - mile 16.5, TAIKO!!
10:40am - mile 17, chinatown/jack london square, all of the sudden there is screaming of "woooooo tara!" yay! rachel, bridget and gio are a beautiful sight. rachel and bridget even ran with me for a mile, you guys are awesome!
10:43am - more "wooooooo tara!" yay again!!! it's leslie and bill, you guys are awesome too!! yay!
10:50am - mile 18, run past the "keep the a's in oakland" folks, give 'em a fist pump and a holler, think this was pretty much the left field bleachers crowd.
10:55am - mile 18.5, west oakland, run through fire courtesy of the crucible folks.
11:10am - mile 20, mandela parkway, i now realize, is actually longer on foot than on my bike. this is strange.
11:20am - mile 21, crazy raider metal band, all decked out in full on raider game gear, i'm scared but i high-five every one of them.
11:40am - mile 23, running around the lake, half-marathoners are at mile 9 by now, some are taking walk breaks, they cheer me on as i go past. yay love.
11:50am - mile 24, see rachel, bridget, and gio again, more love.
12:09pm - mile 26.1, see denise and her friends, more love.
12:09pm - still smiling from denise and company, i see leslie and bill again. LOVE.
12:10pm - mile 26.2, cross the finish line! and hear the announcer calling my name! LOVE!! (finish time 4:38:41)

12:15pm - get ready for this. Af. yep. he was there. ohmygoshsomuchlove.

i gave away my beer tickets to some very grateful boys, cleaned up, and we went to lunch at the breakroom. sloppy joe sandwich and a peanut butter cupcake. mmm. hitched a ride home with leslie and ditched my bike at the office, i'll deal with it tomorrow.

this race was amazing, i've never seen so many people out supporting the runners. usually there are stretches, sometimes miles long, where nobody is out cheering you along. it's really hard, you forget to smile, and that makes all the difference. not the case today, people were out in their front yards and porches and balconies cheering the whole way, some passing out extra snacks and water, it was amazing. the police and security and fire fighters who were blocking the streets weren't just standing idly by, they'll be hoarse tomorrow from a long day of rooting. i am very proud of oakland today. job very well done, and i can't wait to run again next year. at this very moment i'm thinking i'll step back and do the relay (team members?), those people looked so fresh and energetic!

poor girl

she got beat up big time today.
nails clipped, teeth cleaned, three teeth pulled.
spayed, tumor removed, abscessed dewclaw (that's probably been painful her entire life) hacked off.

ma called to let me know it was all done, i could hear the poor dear screaming in the background. i've never heard a noise like that before, it was heartbreaking.
taxi's taking care of her now.
i'll bring her home on april 4th.
i missed my birthday party a few months back, maybe sophie, claire, and i will have a party when she gets here....

countdown!

i'm flying to utah to pick her up the first weekend in april!

ran the across the bay 12k today, what a perfect day for running! clay and ry joined, co watched and nursed a foot wound.
as always, it's such a happy surprise to hear giovanni shout at me from the sidelines, thanks! and thanks to bridget for bringing him out there! wish i'd seen her too.
i did better than last year, but by no means a PR, and so obviously still have not broken my 1 hour goal. i've been all around SLOW throughout my training, maybe i'll get it next year. or maybe i'll get my butt in gear and beat an hour at bay to breakers. maybe.

spring!

i'm sneezing.
my eyes are itchy and a little goopy.
there are 9 days of sunny, 70 degree weather in san francisco's 10-day forecast.
springtime!!!
puxatony phil, come on.

also
i got deposed today. that's a first. silly me, i assumed that this was me bringing my testimony into the record. but the lawyers mentioned court. and not going anywhere next month. i asked what the odds are that i'll have to show up for a trial.
"98.5%"
with a jury and everything?!
yes.

fifi

just got some info about sophie from her previous owners.

they called her...oh goodness gracious...fifi.
yeah, that's probably not going to happen.

and "she's never escaped....except once we found her on the roof. lol."

and what is she afraid of? "scary people."
what does she do when she's scared? "runs and hides, and puts on her ipod. seriously. no joke. we had one modified for her. no joke. lol."

these people are funny, but it sounds like they loved her. that's a good thing. lol?

more looking forward

saw this picture somewhere and it reminded me.
half dome!
june.
yay.

i just signed up for b2b.
w2w signups start april 1.
and the nyc marathon draw doesn't start until april 7, jeez!

so excited!

look who's hanging out with taxi!!


she'll be in sf in april!!

sophie!!!

ok folks.
the search may be over.
meet sophie:

she's a rescue from utah, 7 years old, she meets taxi tomorrow. if all goes as planned, she'll be with ma and kev for a few weeks, and then she's all mine.
ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh.
and she's a paw crosser.

lands end

barb and mike and avarey came out for a visit today, we met out at the sutro baths, walked the lands end trail, checked out an odd estate sale, and had dinner at herbivore.
it was such a nice day, i'm always amazed that a place like this exists in san francisco.

torture

i really need to stop going anywhere near the animal shelter. i can't get out of the place without sobbing. not just tears. seriously sobbing. i'm a disaster.
this girl got me today, she was so skinny and tall, had a ridiculous underbite, and thought sitting involved a twirl. meet aretha:

i didn't take her home. she's nervous with kids, and my conscience (er, mom) reminded me that there are some very special kids in my life, i need a dog who can handle their love. the search continues.

on the up side, i DID make it out of rainbow without a chocolate covered macaroon. i win.

cheerleaders

for anyone who wants to come out and watch the race, here's some info.
race day is sunday, march 28, starting at 7:30am.
i anticipate finishing with about a 10.5 minute/mile pace, crossing the finish line right around noon.
afterward, i'll wobble to my office for a quick shower, and then i want to go to my new favorite sandwich shop for lunch...come with me!!
if you think you'll be out there, let me know so i can watch for you. i won't have my phone with me when i'm running, but i'll have it after the race, so call if you can't find me.
here's the course, with some notes for ideas to hang out and holler at the runners.
the time splits in the notes are complete estimates, so if you really want to see me, get there a little earlier with your soy vanilla latte, gluten-free scone, and cow bell, and just hang out and have fun yelling at people for whatever is written on their shirts ("go canada!" is always a favorite).
warning, if you're driving, parking downtown might be difficult.
if you're barting:
12th street - start/finish
19th street - miles 0.5 and 25.5
rockridge - mile 5
fruitvale - mile 14
lake merritt - miles 17 and 24.5, start/finish
west oakland - mile 19
i'm super excited about this race, i think it could be great for oakland, bringing a ton of money to the city if it's successful enough to become an annual event, i encourage anyone who can to support it!!
my last "to do" between now and race day: find some sweet yellow and green running clothes.


also
across the bay 12k is on sunday march 21, i should finish around 9:30. if you're up early and feel like it, come out to aquatic park. see you other runners out there, i'm first wave. fyi, word on the street (or word from the super fast runner boss lady at my work) is that this is a "great race for singles." yesss.

spend my money on something else, please

i thought it was bad that the census had commercials. i mean really. is it necessary to advertise? people are either going to participate (likely) or not (so they'll get a home visit, and participate anyway). sir christopher guest's involvement aside, i don't see how advertising makes a difference.

and then they had a commercial during the superbowl. holy freaking waste of money.

and today i got a letter from the census letting me know that next week i'll be getting a letter from the census. did they really send out a hundred million or so pre-census warning letters? forget about the money, think about the trees! and i'm guessing the government doesn't pay for postage, so that other letter i got today from the post office letting me know to expect some changes in service because of financial difficulties: well, duh.

UPDATE: today (3/13) i got a postcard from the census letting me know if i need any help filling out the form, to call them. REALLY?

garden!

went upstairs to plant some peppers and green beans...found my carrots and radishes and beets and greens are sprouting! weee!!!
it was pretty up there


and i couldn't resist buying a topsy turvy...looks like i'll be growing tomatoes too! the place down the street only has roma plants. who the heck wants romas? i'll have to expand my search radius.

oakland marathon's coming up quick!

i completed my last long training run today. 20 miles. woah. the hills were fine, tough at times, but you know i love me some hills. the flat part, after we came down lincoln, when we were just running through blocks and blocks and miles of typical oakland scenery...oh dear i started dragging. the nice man i was running with tried to keep me motivated, offering me candy, not letting me stop at red lights when there were no cars around, telling me 'the next water stop has to be just around the corner.' he was awesome, we ran about 15 of the miles side by side, that's huge for me because i don't like running with people.

we started and ended at mile 10 (kilometer 16) on this map:

i treated myself to a vegan club sandwich at the breakroom cafe (place totally rocks!) and then barted home. the bart agent laughed at my leisurely gait ('girl, you're in NO hurry!'), said to come say hi after the race and he'd give me a free ride home. awesome!

i harvested a sweet blister last weekend, and tripled it's size today, radical. blister protection so i could walk home:

next few weeks will be moderate speed and hills training, probably no runs longer than 10 miles, the across the bay 12k on march 21, and that's about it. take 'er easy dude.
almost there, phew! by race day i should also know if i got into the new york marathon, fingers crossed!!

babies

see that big round lady up there in the middle of all those flashy dudes?
well, sassypants just shot out another litter.
so many babies. uncountable babies. and it all started with generous juniper.