WitKids Adventure Race

Last weekend Girls on the Run San Diego (GOTRSD) sponsored a "WitStop" at the WitKids Adventure Race in Balboa Park.

  

Working the GOTR WitStop

Our Tent Was Carrried Over by a Mime Band

WitKids is a local non-profit in San Diego that helps kids complete volunteer projects that show that kids will do Whatever It Takes to help change the world!  The adventure race was an Amazing Race type event which required teams to navigate through the park with the help of a map to visit various WitStops where they would complete various tasks. In addition to the WitStops there was a scavenger hunt included with secret spots identified through clues on the initial challenge page each team was given.

GOTR WitStop

For the GOTR sponsored WitStop each team had to complete four challenges (either physical or written) in a row on a 16-square 'bingo' card.  Some of the physical challenges included jumping rope, doing push-ups, and doing jumping jacks, while the written questions had teams complete exercises that were pulled from the GOTR curriculum.  

GOTR WitStop Challenge Card

Some of the questions the teams had to answer were:

• Name your favorite physical activity
• Name 3 qualities in a friend that are important
• Name 2 junk foods you should eat in moderation
• Name 1 reason that teamwork is important

WitStop Team Doing a Physical Challenge

There were about 25 teams consisting of 2-5 family members competing in the race. It was a lot of fun to see each team come by, decide which four challenges to do, and then go for it! Some of the teams struggled with jumping rope - as would I!

  

WitStop Team Deciding on Challenge Questions

  

After the last team came through we closed down our WitStop and headed to the end of the race. At the finish line celebration there was  a board where each of the kids would pin up a note card containing  a personal goal for themselves. The goals varied from becoming a professional cupcake maker to completing a Harry Potter book. It was fun to see what all the kids came up with and the event itself was a great family-themed event!

  

WitKids Goals

Participating in the WitStop was a lot of fun, and its one more reason that I love Girls on the Run!

Becoming Highly Effective

About a month ago I read the book "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People". I know, I'm a little behind the times with reading it and ever more behind with posting a blog about it. I'm not sure where I even got this copy of the book, but I've had it for years, the pages are yellow, and it was printed in 1989!  I'm pretty sure I didn't buy this book when I was in middle school so who knows where I got this copy??

Little Bookworm

Growing up I absolutely LOVED to read. I didn't get to watch much TV so books were my main form of entertainment. Well, that and talking to my imaginary friends.... kidding! I used to read almost every free moment, and even remember reading by flashlight under the covers as a kid. I was a real bookworm! I even earned the title of "Class Bookworm" when I was in 8th grade! I suppose that is actually an uncool and nerdy award, but I loved it!

 Losing the Love to Read

I read less when I got to high school since I was busy with so many other things, and then when I got to college I barely had any free time. I also had tons of required to reading to do for school that I could never seem to stay on top of and at some point in college reading became a chore to me. It also seemed to have become a sleep aid and I often found myself getting drowsy the more that I read.

 Reading on the Road

Over the past few years the majority of my reading has occurred while I've been traveling and I've made it through books (over the course of a few trips per books) thanks to all the down time in airports and while in the air. I hate to admit though that I have a wandering eye when it comes to books. I'll arrive at the airport and have a few magazines and a book with me, and then I'll walk by the newsstand or a bookstore and see a new book that came out and I'll want that one too! This has resulted in a bookshelf of partially read books.

Finishing Books

One of my new years resolutions this year was to finish reading books that I have bought and borrowed over the years. (Sorry Jenna! I have a handful of your books still!) The first book on my list was "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People". I started reading this book a few months ago and instantly loved it! But then it was shelved until my next trip when I read a bit more, and then finally over my last trip to Colorado and some reading time I allocated for myself this past weekend, I finished reading it! Yay me!

In short - I think this book is so great that I want to buy it for everyone I know! It has great lessons to learn about life, relationships, communication, expectations, your career, your family, etc. Its a lesson on life! The subheading on the cover is "Powerful Lessons in Personal Change". That describes it perfectly!

Folding Down Pages

As I read this book I kept finding sections/sayings/paragraphs that I thought "Oh wow! I have to share this with someone!" After coming upon the third section where I thought that, I finally folded down the corner of the book page, and then went back to find the previous two that had struck a chord with me as well.

Here are a summary of the sections and sayings that I thought were great:

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." - Aristotle

 

Reactive Language vs. Proactive Language

"There's nothing I can do" vs "Let's look at our alternatives"

"That's just the way I am" vs "I can choose a different approach"

"He makes me so mad" vs "I control my own feelings"

"It is not what others do or even our own mistakes that hurt us the most; it is our response to those things. Chasing after the poisonous snake that bites us will only drive the poison through our entire system. It is far better to take measures immediately to get the poison out."

 

"Management is a bottom line focus: How can I best accomplish certain things?
Leadership deals with the top line: What are the things I want to accomplish?"

 

"Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things"

 

"Organize and execute around priorities"

 

"Maturity is the balance between courage and consideration. Emotional maturity is the ability to express one's own feelings and convictions balanced with consideration for the thoughts and feelings of others."

 

"Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply. They're either speaking or preparing to speak. They're filtering everything through their own paradigms, reading their autobiography into other people's lives."

 

"The person who doesn't read is no better off than the person who can't read." (Ouch! This one motivated me to finish the book in non-travel time!

 

"That which we persist in doing becomes easier - not that the nature of the task has changed, but our ability to do so has increased. By centering our lives on correct principles and creating a balanced focus between doing and increasing our ability to do, we become empowered in the task of creating effective, useful, and peaceful lives ... for ourselves, and for our posterity." - Emerson

 

Thank you Stephen R. Covey for the insightful and well written book! I look froward to giving this book to those close to me for Christmas this year. Guess you'll see if you make the cut this December! ;o)

The Marathon: Cheering on a Friend

Last weekend I ran my 9th half marathon in San Francisco – my hometown and my favorite city! I had given up half marathons as a waste if time, training, and entrance fees a few years back (with my full marathon nose tipped up into the air… haha) but ran a couple with David over the past two years and also ran one on my own earlier in the year. After running the Surf City Half Marathon back in February, my friend Christina pointed out that this race was part of the California Dreamin’ Series, and if I also ran the San Francisco Half (or full – NO way) and the Long Beach Half .. I’d get a special medal and race jacket from the series. I was leery of signing up for another race in San Francisco given my hatred of hills, but really liked the Long Beach course and figured running the race in San Francisco would be a nice excuse to go home, so I said what the heck, let’s do it!

 

Relentless Hills on the Course

  

Christina had been training with a group in the city for a while and was originally set to run the SF Half Marathon. She then ran the Rock N Roll Half Marathon in June here in San Diego and had started to run the 13+ distances with the group, and was flirting with the idea of running the full marathon. She then ran 18 miles and felt okay, and I thought WOW, she can do it! I didn’t want her to rush herself but was so excited to hear that she was on a steady track to a full marathon. A few weeks before the race she was able to switch from the half to the full race, and she was set to go! 

 

At the Expo - "The Race Even Marathoners Fear"

  

I hadn’t run the course since 2006 when I ran the full marathon as my second marathon in SF (1st one was the Nike Women’s Marathon) and suffered on the endless hills and swore to never, EVER run a race in SF again. I guess I ate my words! :o)

My trip and race in SF ended up falling at an unfortunate time in my traveling calendar. I had a tradeshow in Vegas for work, followed by a week in Paris visiting my mom, immediately followed with a flight up to SF where I’d be running the race the next day. I got back to Phoenix (where my dear friend Diane was watching my dogs) around 6pm on Friday night, and then 10am Saturday morning flew up to SF, and got up at 4am the following day to run the race, and after the race and a nice meal it was back on a plane back to Phoenix, and then 4am the next day (Monday) I drove back to San Diego with the dogs, dropped them off, and went to work. WOW what a trip.

Christina was kind enough to pick me up from the airport in her environmentally friendly Prius, and we went straight to the marathon expo to pick up our numbers and check out all of the goods. For those of you runners, a few exciting things we saw were that Race Ready (whose shorts I wear in every distance race) now makes a running skirt, eGel was there and seems to be growing their presence (they’re my favorite gel, more about it here), and the race was totally green! Our race/gear check bags were reusable drawstring backpacks! How awesome is that??

 

Marathon Expo Photobook

(Leg Air Guitar, Last Picture)

  

At the expo Christina bought a Race Ready running skirt, I bought a car sticker that says “26.2 Been There. Run That.” Along with several cute coasters with the sayings:

I know, I know – I said I’d NEVER do this again.

Some girls chase boys. I pass them.

Toenails are for sissies.

That night we met up with our friend Jenny and went to dinner at Unicorn (an Asian Fusion restaurant – my fave!) and carbo loaded on yummy, rice heavy dishes. The next morning it was an early wake up call – 4 am! Yuck! The race started at 6:30am and we had planned to leave around 5:15am. Its funny how quickly the time can fly by between 4am and 5am. Before we knew it the cab had arrived and it was time to go.

 

 Cool Ceiling at Unicorn - Copy of Bellagio?

We got to the race about 15 minutes later (after some drama with our crazy and crabby cab driver) after picking up two of Christina’s running friends along the way, and suddenly we were at the start line! There aren’t many things that I like more about distance running than the community that builds around a race start line. During all of those months training and getting up early to run weekend after weekend, at some point I’d start to wonder if I was crazy, and if I was alone in my craziness. As soon as I arrive at a start line and see the tens of thousands of people all waiting there to do the same thing I’m there to do, but all with different goals, standing around in the dark at the crack of dawn, I feel at home. We’re a crazy family of distance runners, and I love it!

I was in an earlier corral than Christina and was off and running about 30 minutes before she was. I had thought prior to the race about giving her some last words of encouragement, or possibly writing them on a little card for her. Well, none of that happened. I blame my travel schedule. :oP I wanted to give her some last words of encouragement and advice but wasn’t sure if I could without crying, and with the flurry of activity going on around us it just didn’t seem suiting. So off I went, and a bit later so did she!

Start Line - Bay Bridge in the Background 

As I started running the race I thought about how much I love running, racing, and racing in a beautiful city. Running all around the city that I grew up in and seeing the sights by foot is pretty fun. In this race and in the previous races I’d run in SF, I noticed that I  felt a rush of memories from my time growing up in the city as I went from one neighborhood to another. I could have lived without having to experience San Francisco's trademark hills by foot, but otherwise I enjoyed the course and the run down memory lane.

 The Race Across the Bridge

The SF Marathon gives you the choice to run the first half or the second half of the full marathon course. I chose the first half for two reasons – I’d get to run over the Golden Gate Bridge, and I’d finish in Golden Gate Park near Christina’s house where I could run back to shower and change and meet my cheering crew. The first half course was tough (notably tougher than the second half), but I powered through it and finished in 2:05. Not a great time, but decent considering.

 Running on the Bridge

After finishing the race I walked (2 miserable windy miles) back to Christina’s place where I showered and finished up some “Team Luini” signs that I had prepared for her. As luck would have it, mile 20 went by two block’s from her house! I had assembled my crew of high school and college friends (Jenny, Deirdre, and Tom) for Christina, armed them with signs, and we marched out to mile 20 to wait for her to come by. Luckily Christina had signed me up for text alerts for her runner tracking so I had a good idea of when she started, and knew that she was keeping a steady pace up to the half marathon mark. Like clockwork, she appeared right when we thought she would for mile 20! She ran down the hill and laughed at our signs, fueled up from her pre-prepared support bag that she set out for me to bring (extra socks, Muscle Milk, energy bar, gel, etc), took a few pictures with us, and then she was off for the last six miles!

Christina Approaching our Cheer Station

In Memory of Anne Moor - Christina's Grandmother

I had never cheered someone on for a full marathon before and was so excited to do so. I’ve always wondered if my friends and family who have watched me race have found waiting for me here and there to be annoying. Well, I didn’t find out because I totally loved being there to support one of my friends!

 

TEAM  LUINI!

We drove downtown and managed to park pretty close to the finish line! (This race is one of the most accessible races I’ve ever run! It is a breeze to get to the start and finish line!) We took our Team Luini signs and headed to the finish where I had predicted that Christina would be coming by in the next 5-10 minutes. We watched anxiously for several minutes .. and then there she came! 

 Team Luini - At the Finish!

She was in such a zone and was staring straight ahead and almost missed our mad screaming and sign waving, but finally she saw us before she flew by to the finish. I’ve never watched a friend finish their first (or any) full marathon, and it was emotional for me to watch just thinking of how I felt on my first time, and every time after that.

 With Christina at the Finish Line!

After Christina finished we rushed over to find her and as soon as she saw us she started choking up. (Actually, it turns out she said she cried right before the finish line too!) As soon as I saw Christina I started to cry too! Omg.. I’m about to cry right now! What an accomplishment! Getting to the point where you decide to do a race, going through months of training, and pushing through hours of running are a big deal! Crossing the finish line is an amazing feeling, and I was so happy and proud to see my friend cross!

 Marathon Finisher w/Her Chupa Chup Reward

We hung out in the finisher’s area for a short while after the race and then headed straight to dinner. My kind of racer! We had lunch at Tropisueno downtown, and had my favorite post-race meal … Mexican! Yummy, carb and protein loaded, and full of salt? Yes please!

Unfortunately soon after the race I had to head back to the airport. Christina was kind enough to drive me back (to San Jose no less!) and I was on a plane back to Phoenix, and then the next day back to San Diego for the first time in two weeks.

  

Overall the race was great! Not my favorite course to run, but it was still enjoyable to run in my home town, and the chance to cheer on a close friend as she ran her first full marathon was worth the trip on its own.

Full vs Half Marathon Medals

Congratulations Christina! I’m so proud of you and hope you are now reaping the emotional awards that a marathon brings. For anyone who hasn’t run a marathon before, I really recommend you try if you can. To quote the movie “The Spirit of the Marathon”, “the marathon will change your life forever”. It really will! I’m a happier, more self-confident, and more determined person today thanks to the character building that marathon training and running has brought me. A lot of you think I’m crazy for running like this, but once you do it you’ll understand. Its amazing.

5 Days of Family Fun in France

Bonjour tout le monde, c’est Domo! Domo is back again to tell you about his exciting European adventures in Paris! Domo spent five days in France last week and had a lot of fun!

  

Walking Through a Paris Garden

If you find Domo’s writing boring and long winded, Domo will summarize his key thoughts about Paris and Parisians below:

• The national pastime appears to be smoking
• Parisians eat their body weight in baguettes
• You always sit next to each other on a sidewalk café not across from each other
• People drive like CRAZY in Paris – lanes are ignored and roundabouts are free-for-alls
• Even though they eat and drink a lot, Parisians are rarely obese. Americans can stand to take note.

First Day – Travel, Movies, & Family Dinner  

Domo left on Saturday from Phoenix but with the two flights (14 hours of flight time combined), the layover, and the time change, Domo didn’t arrive in Paris until early Sunday morning. Domo was excited to be on a new Airbus plane that had a personally controlled TV at each seat! Domo could choose from a nice selection of Movies, TV shows, Music, and Games. Domo tried very hard to sleep on his flight to Paris and even took a sleeping but, but unfortunately couldn’t doze off for more than 45 minutes at a time. Domo was able to keep himself busy though during the flight and finished his book “Sense of Urgency” and watched the movies “Date Movie” with Tina Fey and Steve Carrell (so funny!), “Alice in Wonderland” with Johnny Depp (interesting and weird), and also watched episodes of the show “Big Love” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm”, two of his HBO favorites.  

Domo Travels in "Coach" .. Purse

Upon arriving in Paris on Sunday morning Domo immediately turned on his Blackberry to see if he could get a roaming signal as he did last year on his old phone, and as he did this year on his current phone in Aruba. Domo’s phone did not work! Domo was very sad. Domo might have what you call Crackberry addiction. Without the use of his phone to call his shuttle (Super Shuttle is now international by the way!) Domo had to find a pay phone to make the international call. Domo can’t remember the last time he has even touched a pay phone. Maybe five years?

Domo managed to get to Monika’s mom’s house without a problem and had a nice breakfast with her and George, and then took a nice five hour nap to catch up on his sleep. That night Monika’s mom had planned a welcome party at a nearby Vietnamese restaurant for Domo! Yes! For Domo! Not Monika! ;o)

Family Welcome Dinner

Monika’s cousin Mark from Australia and his wife and baby had just gotten in that morning as well to Paris. They were about to start week one of their FIVE WEEK vacation! Domo was very jealous. Monika’s other cousin Laurent from France also came to the dinner as well, along with a handful of Monika’s mom’s friends from this social site “On Va Sortir” (Let’s go out!)

Second Day – The Pantheon & Family Dinner 

The next day would be Domo’s first day sightseeing in Paris. Domo bought a Paris travel guide at the airport and had gone through the book and marked all of the attractions that seemed interesting. Domo’s first choice was Les Catacombes and his second choice was the chapel of St. Eustache.

The Pantheon

Sadly almost all museums are closed on Monday! Domo arrived at Les Catacombes to find out they were closed. Domo then tried to go visit the chapel but couldn’t find parking there. Luckily Domo had his trusty travel guide and was able to find something that was open – the Pantheon! Domo enjoyed visiting the Pantheon and his favorite part was the huge pendulum in the center of the building.

 Pendulum at the Pantheon

That night Domo was invited over to Monika’s cousin Larent’s house for dinner. Laurent and his wife were cooking dinner for him and he got to meet their baby for the first time.

Gracious Dinner Hosts

Third Day – Swimming, St. Eustache, & Les Catacombes

On his second day in Paris Domo started to feel guilty for not having run for a week. Domo had a half marathon coming up and hadn’t trained for it at all! Domo remembered how much Monika’s mom loves to swim, so Domo asked her if she would take him swimming the following morning. On Tuesday morning Domo got up bright and early and headed over to the local public swimming pool to try to get some laps in. Domo has never liked to swim and couldn’t believe he had asked to go swimming. But what else could Domo do? Domo need to get some type of workout in! Domo tried to think when he had last swam laps and couldn’t even remember. It had probably been 10 to 15 years! Yes, Domo is old.

Domo Enjoying a Chocolate Croissant

Domo’s biggest issue with swimming is the initial plunge into the cold water, and the sensation of being cold all over whenever you stop moving. Luckily for Domo, the water at the pool was so warm! Domo tried out some laps with the breast stroke and freestyle and was amazed by how much his heart was racing after each lap he swam! Domo was being a little bit of a wimp and stopped swimming to take a little break after each lap or so. Domo swam 20 laps in total (1000 meters) in 45 minutes. Domo was pretty proud of that.

Domo Ready to Swim

After swimming Domo headed out to visit Les Catacombes! Domo read on the sign that they’d be walking for about a mile total from entrance to exit. Domo was tempted to log that on his dailymile site, but didn’t. Upon entering Les Catacombes Domo had to climb down a never-ending spiral staircase. It felt like you were climbing down into the center of the earth, and you couldn’t stop since you had a line of people behind you. Once you got down there you walked through a dark, narrow path in the rocks. Domo felt like he walked forever before he finally saw something interesting – stacks of bones! Wow, creepy!

Les Catacombes

Domo was amazed, intrigued, grossed out, and bewildered by the amount of bones he saw stacked along each side of the path. Domo walked further and further and couldn’t believe that the bones were never ending. Towards the end the path was wet and the ceiling was dripping, and Domo was not happy to be walking in his open sandals through the water and started wondering if there was ancient bone residue in the water as well. Domo was grossed out and walked faster towards the exit. Upon climbing up another never ending spiral staircase, Domo was back outside into the light! There were two guards at the exit who asked to look through Domo’s bag. Domo was confused but then asked “Oh! Is this because people try to steal the bones? Gross!” They answered yes, and pointed to a stack behind them. Ewe! There were two skulls and three long bones behind them that people had tried to take. What is wrong with people?

Creepy Bones!

After the bones, Domo headed over to the chapel of St. Eustache. Domo thought that this chapel was very beautiful and enjoyed walking around and looking at the paintings, stained glass scenes, and statues.

 Beautiful Scenes at St-Eustache

Pipe Organ at St-Eustache

Fourth Day – Swimming, Moulin Rouge & Family Dinner 

The next day Domo attempted swimming again, but this time Domo decided that he would only let himself take a break every five laps. This went well and Domo finished another 1000 meter swim in only 33 minutes this time instead of 45! Domo felt good about himself.

After swimming Domo went out to eat at a local Pho restaurant for lunch. This restaurant is known for serving you a plate of beef bones along with your pho. Domo did not find this appetizing, but his company did.

Beef Bones Lunch

After the dinosaur bone dinner, Domo headed over to check ou Moulin Rouge. Domo wanted to see the cabaret show there but passed due to the price of the tickets. They were $120! Domo decided that taking pictures in front of Moulin Rouge would be good enough. Domo was dissppointed to find that Moulin Rouge in real life wasn't half as magical as it was in his favorite movie Moulin Rouge. Sigh. Domo was sad.

Moulin Rouge

Fifth Day – Swimming, Parc Asterix & Family Dinner

Domo’s last full day in Paris was an exciting one, he went to Parc Asterix! Asterix is a French cartoon character and Parc Asterix is his theme park. Domo thinks this might relate to Mickey Mouse and Disneyland?

Domo Treated Like Royalty by Asterix and Friend

Zeus Overseeing the Park 

Zeus Has Flowered Undies!

Domo hadn’t been to a theme park in years and was looking forward to going on some rides! Domo likes roller coasters! Domo rode the roller coaster Goudurix two times in a row and thinks his brain was scrambled a bit. According to Wikipedia the ride Goudurix held the world record for “greatest number of inversions” from 1989 to 1995!

Mark Enjoying a Waffle Ice Cream Sundae

Goudurix Roller Coaster

Domo had fun in the park going on rides, eating park food, and meeting Asterix himself! It was a full day and a nice end to his trip. After the park Domo headed over to Mark & Ann's condo rental for Asian takeout dinner. Yay Asian food! You wouldn't believe this but Domo didn't have a single bite of French food during his whole trip! He had Asian food for just about every meal!

Domo Makes a Wish at the Well

Domo Thinks Monika is Silly

Sixth Day – Travel, Movies & BBQ

On Domo’s last day in Paris he woke up early and got ready to head back to the US. Super Shuttle came at 8am to pick him up, and after bidding farewell to his family he headed off to the Paris airport for an eight hour flight to Philly followed by a 5 hour flight to Phoenix.

Sunset in Phoenix 

Domo was hoping that he could sleep on the flight back and that the trip would whiz by, unfortunately he couldn’t sleep so he read, watched movies, and stared out the window. Domo watched “When in Rome”, “Enchanted”, “Temple Grandin”, and finished reading “Predictably Irrational”. The first two movies were cute and funny, the third was a GREAT movie that Domo highly recommends, and the book was a great read about behavioral economics that you’d enjoy if you’ve also enjoyed reading Freakonomics, or Tipping Point, or Blink.

Domo Reunites with Mika & Kona in Phoenix

Domo Wasn't Treated as Nicely by the Hammond Westies

Domo got into Phoenix around 6pm and was picked up and spoiled with VIP treatment the rest of the night by his dear friends the Hammonds! Domo enjoyed a nice home-cooked BBQ meal but is embarrassed to say that he wasn’t very good company and almost fell asleep at the dinner table. He ended up excusing himself and going to bed at 9:30pm. Technically it was already the next morning on Paris time! Domo needed to get to bed early anyways because the next morning he’d be heading off to San Francisco for the last leg of his string of travel. More details about San Francisco will follow later in the week.

For now, Domo bids you adieu and hopes you enjoyed his pictures!