Winning the lottery.

Today, I won the lottery. Not the lottery where I get to quit my job and move to the Bahamas, but the lottery where I get to spend another summer sweating on the B&A trail. I got into the NYC marathon!

This is not an outcome I expected. I signed up for the marathon lottery on the day it opened back in November. At that time, the organizers were predicting that 8-12% of the lottery applicants would be accepted. I paid an $11 processing fee at the time and had to click through about 10 messages telling me that that fee was NON-REFUNDABLE.

Then, in January, I got an email from the NYC marathon people. Apparently, the applicant pool grew so large that they dropped the percentage of lottery applicants expected to get in to "well below" the previous 8-12%. They even took the unprecedented step of offering lottery applicants the chance to withdraw and get our money back.

I stayed in the pool because I wasn't really looking to get in for 2011. The NYC marathon has a policy that, if you get rejected in the lottery 3 years in a row, you automatically get in for year 4. So, my brilliant plan was to keep entering every year and run the marathon by 2014. I was hoping to land in 2012 or 2013. So much for brilliant plans!

Obviously, I knew that this could happen when I signed up for the lottery. When I submitted my entry, I promised myself that I would run if I got in. So, it looks like I'm running. I'm still trying to adjust to the idea of adding marathon training back into my already-packed summer, but I am still excited. NYC is one of my very favorite places, and I can't pass up the opportunity to experience it through an event like the marathon. On my drive home from work today, I put on "Empire State of Mind" and almost shed a tear.

See you on November 6th, New York City!

The results are in!

This is likely to be the last you hear from me for a few days because I need to buckle down and finish my pro-sem paper (aka: thesis). Before I do, though, I thought I would share the hot-off-the-presses results of the Ridgway Triathlon!

The Run: I completed the run in 47:49, and was surprised to learn that it was actually 5.14 miles. This explains why the last mile felt sooooo long. It also means that this is my fastest 5-miler by a long shot and my second fastest race ever. Yay! I came in 46th out of 55 runners.

The Bike: Pat completed the 15-mile bike leg in 1:08:06, making him 49th out of 55 bikers.

The Canoe: Pat and I completed the 9-mile canoe leg in 1:25:46, which made us 39th out of 55 boaters. So, this looks like our best leg, but the results are a little screwy because 12 teams backed out of the canoe leg and took automatic times of 1:30.

Overall: Pat and I finished the whole thing in 3:21:41, making us 48th out of 55 teams. We were never expecting to win, but we did come in well under our goal of 4 hours. Go team Make It Work!

The Bride and Groom: Krista and Ray both did great. Ray came in 14th overall and 4th in his Ironman category. Krista came in 35th overall and 3rd in the Ironwoman category. Krista's family skipped the canoe leg, but their team finished right behind her, 36th overall. Go wedding party!

Row, row, row your boat.

Happy Easter! I am happily home from my weekend of celebrations, which was filled with surprises and adventure. Here's the recap:

Thursday morning: I went to boot camp, as usual, where our trainer Kate chose to focus on legs. I know we did a wide variety of exercises, but I felt like we just did squats for an hour. Remember this- it will be important later.

Thursday afternoon: My boss surprised us by declaring a half-day. This turned out to be a HUGE blessing, as I had seriously underestimated how long it would take to pack for both a triathlon and a wedding. Running clothes (for several weather possibilities), running accessories, bike, bike accessories, food, transitions bag, paddles, dress, makeup, shoes... I almost made a packing list, which I have never done before. It looked like I was packing for a month, as opposed to three days.

Thursday evening: My friend Julia's 30th birthday, for which I was DJ.

With the birthday girl!

The party was at a bar called Little Miss Whiskey's in DC. Julia had reserved the second floor, which included an actual DJ booth, ie: a big booth raised up about 4 feet off the ground. I was both intimidated and thrilled.

The DJ booth had no stairs, so the only way up was a little ladder like you might find on a bunk bed. I must have gone up and down that thing 200 times, and every time I used my already beat-up quads. I also had a great time and wound up spinning records (figuratively speaking) until 1am. This all came back to haunt me on...

Friday morning: I woke up (with great difficulty) to very, very sore quads. The one on the right (the one I used for the DJ ladder) was particularly painful. I hobbled around, finishing my packing, very grateful for a self-imposed 2-drink limit which kept me from being hungover.

Friday afternoon: Pat arrived at 1pm and we departed for middle-of-nowhere, PA. The drive should have taken 5 1/2 hours, but conditions were less than ideal. We made the whole trip through cold, driving rain and fog, talking all the while about how miserable it would be to race in those condtitions. About 3 hours in, I made a catastrophic wrong turn, which instantly added an hour to our trip. Fortunately, that detour took us into a tiny town which just happened to have a lovely little Italian restaurant. So, at least we got a good pre-race dinner! Less fortunately, the hours of sitting only made the pain in my quads worse. By dinner, I was getting very worried about my upcoming run.

Friday night: We finally got to our hotel a little before 10. By the time we arrived, the temperature was in the 40's and the rain had actually gotten worse. I had locked my bike to my trunk rack, and when we went to remove it, we found that the lock was stuck. Eventually, we just took the whole rack off and brought the bike into the hotel, dragging the rack behind it. It could not have looked more suspicious, but nobody said anything! Way to go, security! Once we got to the room, we dried out the lock and it opened right up. Phew! Then, we unpacked the rest of our stuff while we watched the evening weather forecast. The prediction for Saturday was highs in the 60's with an 80% chance of rain and thunderstorms all day. So, we went to bed anticipating an unpleasant race the next day.

Saturday morning: We got up bright and early, ate a big breakfast, and headed to Ridgway to set up for the triathlon. While we ate and packed, the temperatures were in the 40's and it was pouring! When we pulled into Ridgway, though, the rain stopped and the temperatures started to creep up:

We went to packet pickup at the Ridgway courthouse, where we received instructions on how to set up our gear, and learned that our triathlete/bride-and-groom friends had become local celebrities.

Pat in front of the courthouse.

After packet pickup, we went to a local canoe rental place to secure our boat, and then to the transition area to park the bike. We figured out what we would need at each transition and packed it into bags so we could hand it off easily. At a little after 10am, we headed back to the courthouse to meet our friends and get final instructions from the race organizers.

The happy/crazy couple!

Back at the courthouse, we introduced ourselves to some of Krista and Ray's very nice family and friends, and then the bride and groom themselves arrived! Needless to say, their fabulous outfits drew a lot of attention. The race director even recognized them for scheduling their wedding around this event.

While we were meeting and greeting, we started to hear a rumor: the canoe portion of the race had been cancelled. The rains of the previous day had caused the river to rise to dangerous levels and the anticipated winds and storms were only adding to the treacherous conditions. I had mixed emotions about this announcement. On the one hand, I had been pretty afraid of canoeing in bad conditions. On the other hand, I had been looking foreward to this event for months and was unlikely to get to do it again. Then, a few minutes before the 11am start time, the race director made an official announcement: the canoe leg would be optional. If a team chose not to canoe, 90 minutes would be added to their run and bike time to get an overall time. Many teams (including most of the ones from the wedding) promptly bowed out of the canoe leg. Krista, Ray, Pat and I all looked at each other and immediately we were agreed: we were going to do it anyway.

At 11am, I set off with the other runners for the first leg of the race: a 5-mile run.

And we're off! I'm in the pink jacket.

Prior to this race, I had done only two 5-mile races. The first was the first time I ever ran 5 miles, and it took me 58 minutes. The second was the Saturday after MCM, and it took me 52 minutes. Going into this race, I thought I could probably shave 5 minutes and complete it in 47 minutes. That would be fast for me, but having looked at the 2010 Ridgway results, I knew it was slow for this race. So, I accepted that I would be in the back of the pack, but I decided to pace myself by at least staying in sight of the pack.

This strategy served me really well. In the beginning, I was definitely going faster than I'm used to, but I was able to keep it up. At mile 3, I was a bit ahead of my goal and feeling good. In mile 4, I started to struggle, but I also passed a couple of people, which was gratifying. Mile 5 was pretty hellish. I knew I had my goal, but I started to feel nauseous and achy. My sore quad wasn't bothering me, but I developed a painful stich in my side. The last half-mile was absolute misery, but I got to the end and tagged Pat in what I think was under 47 minutes (still waiting on official results). So, I was really happy with the run.

Once Pat set off on the bike, I went to the car to gather our bike-to-canoe transition materials and choke down a veggie sub from Subway. I rested and stretched for a few minutes, then joined Krista's family at the transition area to watch bikers come in and wait for Pat. One of the highlights was watching Krista come in on her bike to chants of "Here comes the bride!" from spectators. I was expecting Pat to take 50-60 minutes for the 15-mile bike ride. (He did 15 miles in 50 minutes in a tri last summer.) When an hour passed and Pat was nowhere in sight, I started to worry that my bike had developed a problem. To my great relief, he came in just a few minutes off schedule, panting "Now I know what it's like to do a race you haven't trained for! I won't do that again!"

Pat took off his helmet, then we threw on our life jackets and ran to the canoe launching area. For me, this was probably the scariest moment of the whole race. The river was churning and people were swapping stories of other teams who had flipped their canoes and forfeited the race. There was no ramp into the water- we had to drop the boat off a little grassy ledge and then hold it steady as we got inside. Fortunately, Pat was calm and determined and he talked me through the launch. Once we got into the water, I knew we were going to make it...

...But that doesn't mean there weren't some moments along the course. The canoe leg of the Ridgway tri is 9 miles long. In a normal year, boaters complete it in 90mins- 2 1/2 hours. This year, though, the current was moving significantly faster than normal. Racing was out of the question; our only goal was to keep moving forward and steer. For the most part, it wasn't too bad, but there were about 3 spots where we hit serious turbulence. The word "rapids" would not be inappropriate. Neither Pat nor I is all that experienced in a canoe and we had only practiced together twice. There were definitely some prayers said in the rougher spots. On the whole, though, we had a great trip down the river. We finished in just about 90 minutes, both exhausted and full of adrenaline. Team "Make it Work!" had lived up to our name!

Victory!

Note: We did not actually canoe in these clothes.

Saturday afternoon: Pat and I finished the tri around 2:30pm, 30 minutes ahead of schedule. We were the last of the wedding crew to come in, so once we returned our boat, everyone headed back to hotels for quick snacks, naps, and changes. At this point, two miracles took place: First, we actually had ample time to get ready for the wedding. Second, all the rain went away and the sun made an appearance! 

Saturday evening: Clean, dry, and happy, Pat and I headed to the church for the actual main event of the day: the wedding of our two dear friends!

Krista and Ray cleaned up pretty thouroughly for the wedding, but the triathlon was not forgotten. The minister made a special addition to the vows in their honor: 'In training and in racing, At mile 2 and at mile 22." Also, the whole bridal party entered the reception hall to the (very appropriate) "Rocky" theme. It was a lovely wedding, and the whole day really captured everything that I love about Krista and Ray.

Sunday morning: Pat and I reluctantly dragged ourselves out of bed to head home, hoping to get to our families' Easter celebrations. As we packed, we swapped notes on aches and pains. I noted, honestly, that I am not nearly as sore today as I was on Friday. So, I will happily inform Kate from boot camp that her class is harder than a triathlon.

Sunday afternoon: In another Easter miracle, Pat and I arrived in Annapolis at 1pm, in plenty of time for the Easter parties. I was exhausted and wanted nothing more than sleep, but the prospect of seeing this face got me out of the house:

Guess who loves chocolate bunnies?

Congratulations, Krista and Ray, and Happy Easter, everyone!

Celebrations!

The April craziness continues. The NCE, one final paper, and a few other assignments are behind me, and now my pro-sem paper (aka: thesis) looms. The due date for that is next Thursday, which is going to make for a few unpleasant days next week. Before that, though, I have some celebrations to attend!

First, my friend Julia's 30th birthday, for which I will serve as DJ. Julia is a very devout Catholic, and God seems to have tested her by making her 30th birthday fall on Good Friday. Not the most appropriate day for a celebration. I saw Julia back in December, and she told me dejectedly that she thought she might not have a party at all. I told her that she was looking at the situation all wrong- God had handed her the perfect setup for the most fabulously sacreligious party EVER! Immediately, we started throwing out themes (see this post to get in on that), and eventually Julia decided to throw a "Last Supper" in her 20's today, the day before Good Friday. I am writing this post to the sounds of playlists I will debut in just a few hours, and I am certain this will be a fabulous party. I just hope that I can stay awake and that nobody has to take my cup from me...

Tomorrow, my friend Pat and I are heading up to Middle-of-Nowhere, Pennsylvania for the wedding of our friends Krista and Ray. Krista and Ray are super-athletes, who got engaged just after completing a 50-mile race,  so of course they decided to schedule their wedding around a triathlon. Krista informed me months ago that Ridgway, PA, close to her hometown, has a 30-year tradition of hosting a run/bike/canoe triathlon on Easter Saturday. The race is a 5-mile run, followed by a 15-mile bike race, and 9 miles in a canoe or kayak. It can be done as individuals (they call that the "Ironman division") or in teams of 2-4. Krista and Ray will be competing as individuals, Pat and I will be a team of two, and seven relatives have formed two teams of three and four. I have been super-excited about this race for months, but it is also intimidating, for three reasons: 

First, the schedule. The race starts at 11am and should take about 4 hours to complete (just under 1 hour each for the bike and run, 2 hours for the canoe, and a few minutes for transitions). Then, we'll have to take a shuttle from the finish back to the start, drive 40 minutes to our hotel, shower and change, and be ready for the start of wedding festivities around 5pm. This will take a near-miracle to pull off.

Second, the competition. I have reviewed last year's results, and these Ridgway people are fast. For the 2010 run leg, 48 of 49 competitors came in under my 5-mile PR. I am fairly confident that I can shave 5 minutes off that time, but even that would only get me to position 43 of 49. Gulp. Also, Pat and I have only put in two canoe practices. We can keep the boat moving, steer (sort of), and go for a long time, but we don't really know if we can race.

Finally, the weather. Currently, the forecast is for rain all day on Saturday. That's no problem for the run, but could make the bike and canoe legs treacherous. Still, I'd rather deal with difficult conditions than have the race cancelled. When else will I be able to say I competed in a wedding triathlon?   

God and weather-willing, I look forward to posting a celebrations and race report sometime Sunday or Monday. Until then, have a good weekend and happy Easter!

Done is good.

At Bryn Mawr, we had about a billion traditions, including several related to finals. One of my favorites was the "Done is Good" sign. Toward the end of each semester, your HA (hall advisor) would give you a sign on which you could create a checklist of every project, paper, or assignment you had left to complete. Every time you checked something off, your HA would give you candy. All of the signs featured the same headline: "Done is Good!" Over the course of four years, that slogan taught me several important lessons about managing a busy life.

As you know from previous posts, I am in the midst of one of the busiest finals seasons of my long academic career. As a result, I've been slacking on the blogging and now I have lots of updates. Here of some highlights, organized around the important lessons of the "Done is Good" sign:

Lesson #1: Don't let perfection be the enemy of the done.

Bryn Mawr is a college that attracts a very high number of type-A overachievers. The typical Bryn Mawr student has a tough time turning in work that is anything less than excellent. This leads to a real temptation around finals time: extensions. "Sure, my paper is okay now, but with a few more days, I could make it perfect!" Bad idea. More often than not, taking one extension just throws off your whole work schedule and leads you into a cascade of other extensions. Whatever you have done by the due date, just turn it in!

This lesson came into play for me last Wednesday evening. Through a cruel twist of scheduling, I had assignments due for every class on Thursday, including my final paper (and only graded assignment) for one of my classes. By the time I left work on Wednesday, I had about 15 of 20 pages written. Those pages were decent, but not great. So, the task for Wednesday night was to finish writing and then try to make the paper a bit better. I worked for awhile, broke for dinner, and then went to the bathroom to brush my teeth before getting back to work. That's when I noticed that I had acquired a HUGE swollen lump on my right eyelid.

A little freaked out, I consulted my regular physician, Dr. Google. Dr. Google had two plausible suggestions: a bacterial infection or an allergic reaction. I decided to take a Benedryl, hoping it was the latter. The problem is that Benedryl knocks me out in a flash. I took a half-dose and went back to work, hoping for the best. Within half an hour, the swelling was going down, but so was I. I knew there was no way I could stay awake and finish my paper. Thus, the temptation of the extension. Remembering the lessons of "Done is Good," I resisted the temptation to email my professor and instead set an alarm for 4:30am and went to sleep. Fortunately, I got up at 4:30 with a normal eyelid, pulled together an okay finished paper, and even made it to Boot Camp at 6am. Onward!

Lesson #2: You are only guaranteed to fail what you don't complete.

During my senior year, when I was an HA, I remember dispensing this piece of advice along with many a "Done is Good" sign. Everyone has at least one academic weak spot, and during finals, anxiety about that weak spot can become overwhelming. I have both witnessed and participated in several meltdowns that went something like this: "There is just no way I'm going to pass this class! My final exam/paper/project is so bad that I shouldn't even turn it in!" This is an even worse idea than getting extensions. I have learned from experience (thank you, AP Chem and college French) that you can do very, very poorly on just about all of your assignments and exams and still just barely pass a class. You can not, however, pass a class for which you turn nothing in. So, no matter how bad it is, you need to get it done and turn it in.

I remembered this lesson on Saturday, as I sat for the National Counselor Exam (NCE). This is an exam that one must pass in order to be licensed as a counselor. It is 200 multiple choice questions, which can cover anything you may or may not have learned in your 60 credits worth of counseling courses. For me, this means anything I learned in the past four years. Needless to say, reviewing four years' worth of material while working a full-time job and continuing to take classes is challenging. Also, the scoring of the NCE is a little wacko, so its very hard to know how well you have to do in order to pass.

I studied for the NCE off and on from January through last Friday night. I used a review book which everyone who has ever taken the test swears by, but I definitely was not able to give my test preparation the time it deserved. Friday night, I took a practice NCE and passed, but not by the margin I would have liked. So, I went into the exam Saturday with serious concern that I might not pass. Still, I would have been guaranteed not to pass had I not shown up. The test was hard, but not as hard as I had feared, so I am hopeful that I will get good news in the mail 6-8 weeks from now!

Lesson #3: Sometimes done is as good as you can do.

Bryn Mawr is a very selective school. If you get in there, you were one of the best students in your high school (if not the best) and you are used to doing very well on all things academic. Mediocrity is not your friend. Something funny happens when you get into a selective school, though. Everyone in your incoming class is used to being the best, and you can't all continue to be the best. Also, your professors know that everyone is super-smart and they assign correspondingly difficult work. Someone is going to be mediocre by selective school standards, and it could very well be you. If you want to preserve your self-esteem and sanity, its important to let go of competing with others and just push yourself to do the best you can do.

This lesson came to mind on Sunday, when I had my second bike/run practice with the tri training group. As you may recall, the first bike practice kicked my a**, so I had hoped to get in a decent amount of practice before this week's meeting. That hope was derailed by the papers and the NCE. Between the two bike practices, I went out on my bike once, and that trip got cut short when I tried to down-shift on a hill and popped a chain. So, I went to Sunday's meeting with a bike fresh from the repair shop and a lot of nerves.

Naturally, our trainers had scheduled a truly punishing workout. We went to a very hilly area with few cars and were set the following task: 5 hill repeats on the bike, 5 hill repeats running, plank series, repeat. Just like the first practice, I could not begin to keep up with my classmates on the bike. I lost sight on them during the bike ride to the hills, and they started lapping me on the hills within minutes. To add insult to injury, my chain popped off again during my first trip up the hill, so I lost time while one of our trainers fixed it, and I also lost the use of my best hill-climbing gear. Just what I needed- an extra challenge!

As they were explaining the workout, our trainers told us that we didn't have to do cycles of 5 repeats if that was too hard. We could do 4, 3- whatever worked for us. Naturally, it was tempting to take this as permission to not even attempt the 5's. Fortunately, my pride saved me from copping out. Not wanting to look even weaker than I already did, I decided that I would do my best to finish the 5's, even if I had to do them much slower than everyone else. And that's exactly what I did! I was slow, and exhausted, and a little nauseous at times, but I kept going. By the end, I felt much more comfortable on the bike and good about just finishing the workout. It didn't hurt that, as we rode back to our cars, everyone was saying that the workout had been hard and they had been tempted to quit. It really didn't hurt that I actually woke up at 5:30am the next day with no soreness and was able to go lift weights. I may be slow, but I'm not weak!

I have more updates, but I need to resume my long quest toward May 5th, otherwise known as "Done!"   

Lisa Simpson goes swimming.

The days of reckoning have arrived. A couple of posts ago, I laid out the insanity that is the next four weeks of my life. This particular week may be the worst. I had my long-dreaded first swim workout in my tri training class today, I have assignments due in all three classes Thursday (two of them major assignments), and then I take the National Counselor Exam on Saturday. Yikes! 

So let's start with the good news: The swim went WAY better than expected. As I've mentioned previously, I've been trying to remember how to swim since January, but having major trouble swimming underwater. This problem left me exhausted and on the verge of panic every time I tried to swim, and (not surprisngly) sucked all the fun out of something I loved when I was a kid. After struggling on the bike last week, I was really anxious about trying to keep up with the rest of the tri-training group in the pool.

Fortunately, our super-nice coaches and my inner Lisa Simpson came to my rescue. Having seen my swim anxiety broadcased on Facebook earlier today, our coach Andrea came prepared to deal with my issues. She pulled me aside as soon as we got in the pool, gave me some really easy drills to practice breathing underwater, and got our other coach, Ellen, to stick with me. That's when "Lisa" kicked in: I have trouble pushing myself out of my comfort zone, but ever since I was a kid, I have wanted to please anyone I think of as a teacher. I was always a teacher's pet in elementary school (and beyond) and that desire to please has never left me. Its the reason I lift more weight in a class than I do on my own, the reason I run farther when I train with coaches, and the reason I keep going in boot camp on days I want to cry. Sure enough, it worked in the pool. Once I had someone helping and pushing me, I was able to calm down, focus, and push past my breathing problem. My endurance in the pool still leaves much to be desired, but I did more today than I ever would have imagined. I even managed to enjoy myself a little. Phew!

Now, I can only hope that the rest of this week is as un-disastrous as today! I've been studying for the NCE off and on since January, but I have absolutely no idea if my studying has been adequate and I don't think I will know until I take the exam. I keep reminding myself that, in my pre-ADHD treatment days, I would have started studying for a comprehensive exam on four years worth of school somewhere around the night before. So, it could be worse! Lisa, I hope you are still with me on Saturday!

Attention Four Eyes: Adventures in narcicissm, part two.

Some of you may recall my first adventures in narcissim post from February, in which I talked about getting contacts in order to make running, biking, and swimming easier. When I went to the opthamologist to get fitted for the contacts, I got some bad news: my prescription had changed, meaning I needed new glasses.

This was bad news not only because my already-abyssmal vision is getting worse, but also because glasses are really expensive. I have worn glasses since third grade, but my parents paid for them until I got out of college. Thus, I was stunned the first time I went shopping for new frames post-college and paid around $300. (That was in 2002.) To make matters worse, only a few months after I got those glasses, I walked into a plate glass window and snapped them in half. D'oh! (As an added bonus, this occurred during a first meeting with a new client.)

I had those '02 glasses for such a short time that I can't even dig up any photos of me wearing them. I have lots of pictures of my next pair of glasses because I wore them for a very long time:

At a party with fellow Bryn Mawr alums/Yalies in New Haven, 2004.

I don't remember exactly how much those glasses cost; I just remember that I was very careful with them around plate glass windows.

I got my next pair of glasses in summer 2005:

I bought these at one of those cheap, 2-for-1 places. I got them and a pair of sunglasses for something like $180. Unfortunately, I think I got what I paid for. I loved the style of these glasses, but I felt like I was a little cross-eyed for the whole three years I wore them. Also, about a year after I got them, the paint started flaking off. Not wanting to buy new glasses, I actually used model paint to touch them up for a good couple of years.

Finally, in 2008, I got sick of the model paint and bought new glasses:


With my beautiful niece, Summer.

This time, I went to a "real" place instead of another cheap place. The quality of the glasses was definitely better, but I also paid close to $500. I was pretty appalled by this. It was virtually impossible to buy anything in the store (which was a regular mainstream place, not a fancy boutique) for under that amount. As a non-profit worker/student, $500 is about 25% of my monthly income. Heck, my mortage payment is only $800!

So, back in February, when I heard I would need new glasses, I immediately started worrying about cost. Right now, my very minimal extra income is going to tri gear and summer travel, and I did not want to drop a big chunk of it on glasses.

Fortunately, help arrived from an unexpected source: Real Simple magazine. I read Real Simple primarily for recipes (which are consistently good), but it can also be a good source for bargains. In the March issue, they mentioned an online company called Warby Parker, which sells glasses for $95. Not only that, but they donate a pair of glasses to charity for every pair they sell. I was a little wary of shopping for glasses online, but the price was so great, I had to check it out.

I logged on and quickly discovered that the Warby Parker site is an ideal place to go if you have a few hours to kill. Its chock full of interesting info about why glasses cost so much and how access to glasses can change someone's life. Even more addictive is the "Virtual Try-On" feature, which allows you to upload a photo of yourself and see how you look in any of Warby Parker's frames.

Still, I was a little skeptical. If you know me, you probably know that I love to hate hipsters, and the Warby Parker aesthetic is hipster all the way. They even got their name from the journals of Jack Kerouac. (Hear that? That's me rolling my eyes.) I thought I might be a little too old to pull off the Warby Parker styles. Also, the vast majority of their frames are really big, and big frames can be a disaster on a small person like me. Just as I was about to log off, I noticed a link for the "Home Try On" option. This is pretty awesome: Warby Parker will send you any five pairs of their glasses to try on for five days totally free, with no obligation. You don't even pay to ship them back. Once I saw that, I thought "What the heck?" and placed an order for the five smallest frames I could find on the site.

When I ordered the home try-on box, I got a message warning that Warby Parker is backlogged with orders, meaning my order might take awhile to fill and might be slightly modified. I got the box of frames about two weeks later, and learned that "slightly modified" was an understatement. Of the five frames I ordered, only two were in the box. The other three were seemingly chosen at random. I emailed customer service, who, to their credit, were super-responsive and nice. They suggested that I could send the first glasses back and try again for the ones I wanted, though I might have to wait awhile. I found that a bit frustrating.

Still, I had the glasses in the box, so I decided to give them a go. I ruled out three pairs as totally wrong right away, but kept two as contenders. Then, I took pictures of myself wearing the the finalists and started a surprisingly vigorous and fun online discussion.

This is the "Zagg," one of my two finalists.

Ultimately, I decided to give one of the try-on box frames a try. Warby Parker has a pretty solid money-back guarantee, so I had little to lose. I placed the order online (which just required me to know my prescription) and also faxed my prescription so they could confirm that I had entered it correctly. To my great surprise, after the delay in getting the try-on box, my actual glasses shipped (for free) in less than a week. I had them 8 days after I placed the order.

The "Japhy," winner of my online glasses search.

It took me a few days to get used to the style of these glasses, but the quality is great. They are absolutely as nice as any glasses I have paid $500 for, and they are made even nicer by the knowledge that I won't be paying credit card interest on them.

As an added bonus, I learned through this process that Warby Parker is rapidly developing a cult following online. If you visit them on Facebook, you'll see daily postings from people showing off their new glasses or soliciting opinions on their home try-ons. Despite the high hipster factor, I have to admit that its pretty fun. A few days after I got my glasses, I spotted another woman in Ikea also wearing Warby Parkers and I very nearly approached her to share our special bond.

So, if you need new glasses, give Warby Parker a try! You'll feel like a bargain-savvy hispter, and who doesn't want that?

Underestimating and Overestimating (in which I run the Cherry Pit 10-miler, eat an enormous burger, and attend tri training class #1).

Hello! I am writing this post from the brink of total physical collapse. Its been an intense day, all about underestimating and overestimating:

First, the underestmating: This morning was the Annapolis Striders' Cherry Pit 10-miler. I ran this race for the first time last year, in 1:49. I was sure I could come close to that time this year, but I doubted that I could beat it. I simply have not kept up with my running since the B&A Half on March 6, and Cherry Pit is a hard, hilly race. Given my low expectations, I started out slowly, hanging back and chatting with friends. I lost the friends around mile 3, but I stayed at a conservative pace. Around mile 5, I realized that the miles were flying by and I still felt pretty good, so I picked it up a bit. At mile 8, I looked at my watch and realized that I could PR if I could run the last two miles at 5K pace. It was tough, but I did it, coming in somewhere around 1:47 (no official results yet). Still, I finished with gas in the tank and wished that I had started the race with more confidence.

The underestimation trend continued when I got home. Yesterday, I visited the local butcher, hoping to buy some bison burgers for a post-race treat (if you haven't tried bison, it is SO GOOD!). I picked a package from a cooler that seemed to contain all bison, and thought I was buying four 1/4 pound bison burgers. Then, at lunchtime today, I opened the package and realized that I actually bought two 1/2 pound beef burgers. Oops. I'm not sure I've ever eaten a 1/2 pound burger before. I had to put it on a pita because I don't have any buns large enough for a patty that size. The burger was intimidating, but also delicious. I ate the whole thing, plus some mashed potatoes, and a salad. 6 hours and some serious activity later (see below), I am still pretty full. Thank you, enormous burger!

Now, on to the overestimation portion of the day: my first class with the "Wonder Women" tri-training group. I signed up for my first tri right after the marathon, feeling excited and not too intimidated. Its a sprint, so the distances are short, and I loved both swimming and biking as a kid. How hard could it be to pick them up again? Well, if you've been following my attempts at swimming, you know that my childhood abilities do not necessarily translate to adulthood. I can now add biking to the list of things that were fun when I was a kid, but are incredibly hard now.

I was definitely nervous for this first class, as I knew we would be biking, and I only went for my first adulthood bike ride yesterday. Still, I thought I could keep up. I'm actually pretty good in spin class, and the class was sure to be packed with other first timers, right? Wrong. All it took was one glance at my classmates' bikes compared to mine to know that these ladies are in a different league. Sure enough, when we did introductions, I learned that I am the only first-timer in the group. When we set off on the bikes, I saw just how far behind I actually am. I was far to the back, out of sight of the other riders, within the first 3-5 minutes. I struggled for the whole 6 miles, actually considering dropping out at a couple of points. Our very kind and gracious instructor hung back with me the whole time, as I fought both fatigue and embarrassment. I can accept being in the back of the pack, but I hate being last.

I did get a little redemption when we got off the bikes and transitioned to a 1-mile "benchmark" run (meaning that we will run the same mile several times throughout the training to gauge our progress). Given the race in the morning and the brutal bike ride, I had very low expectations for the run. Yet, as soon as we got going, I got caught up in the excitement of an activity in which I actually feel competent. Somehow, I managed to run my fastest mile of the day and finish ahead of more than half the group. So, that was a bit of a confidence builder for the tri. It was a good reminder that one of my strengths as an athlete is the ability to shake off a rough patch and keep pushing.

I think I may need to call on that strength tomorrow morning, when the alarm goes off and I can't feel my legs...

Be prepared.

Its fitting that yesterday was April Fool's Day, because it marked the beginning of one of the most insanely busy months I have ever faced in a lifetime of insane busy-ness. I have known this month was coming since the beginning of this semester, and yet I still feel totally overwhelmed and unprepared. Here's a quick run-down of the highlights:

Sunday, April 3, 8am: The Striders' Cherry Pit 10-miler. Last year, I ran this having not run more than a 5K since the B&A Half-Marathon in early March. I swore I would not do that again... Guess who's doing that again?

Sunday, April 3, 4-6pm: The first meeting of my tri-training class, during which we will be doing a bike ride and 1-mile run. I finally picked up a bike yesterday, which I will take out today for my first actual, outdoor bike ride in about 12 years. Combine my inexperience on the bike with the fatigue I'll be feeling from the 10-miler in the morning and you get some major insecurity. The last-picked-kid-in-gym-class in me is a little nervous that I'll get kicked out of the class.

Thursday, April 7:  Presentation in my Career counseling class. This is probably the thing I'm best prepared for and least worried about this month. Phew!

Saturday, April 9: Montgomery County Road Runner's Difficult Cross-Country 8K. This is a race I ran last year and loved, but I have not run XC since last summer, so I'm a bit afraid of twisting my ankle (or worse). I may skip this if I'm too behind on schoolwork, but I really want to run it.

Sunday, April 10th: Tri-training class #2, in which we will be swimming. I am terrified. I have been struggling to keep up with my swim practices and I still can't seem to swim underwater.

Thursday, April 14th: Academic Day of Reckoning #1: I have major assignments due in two out of three classes. I have a little done on each, but not nearly enough given...

Saturday, April 16th: Day of Reckoning #2: I take the National Counselor Exam, a comprehensive exam on all four years of my counseling studies, which I have to pass in order to be licensed. Why did two of my professors make major assignments due the same week that many of my classmates and I are taking this exam? Your guess is as good as mine.

Sunday, April 17th: Tri-training class #3. This one is on the bike again. I hope to feel more comfortable by then.

Thursday, April 21st: My good friend is going to have the greatest birthday party ever, and I am going to lend my DJ skills. This will be fun, but I wish I had more time to plan for it, because it needs to be good!

Saturday, April 22nd: My friend Pat and I will be in Ridgway, PA for our friends' wedding, which is preceded by the annual Ridgway Triathlon: 5 miles running, 15 miles biking, 9 miles canoeing. I will run, Pat will bike, we will both canoe. I'm a little afraid of the last part, because we have only practiced a few times and 9 miles is a long way in a canoe. Also, we don't start until 11am and need to be done in time to start the wedding festivities at 5pm.

Thursday, April 28th: Day of Reckoning #3: My pro-seminar paper (which is Loyola's equivalent of a thesis) is due. I have a near-complete draft of this (we've been turning in chapters all semester), but it is ROUGH, and I would like to turn in a much better finished product.

Sunday, April 30th: The second annual Arbutus Spring Fling 5K, organized by my running buddy Val.

Sunday, May 1st: Tri-training class #4. Swimming again (shudder).

Thursday, May 5th: My last day of classes at Loyola! This is happy, but the joy is diminished somewhat by the fact that I'll be taking a final in Career and maybe turning in all of our other assignments. My Career prof likes to give assignments, but not due dates, so I have a bunch of work that I know will be due sometime before May 5th. Awesome.

Sunday, May 8th: I will be in Texas to DJ my friend Mindy's wedding. Much like the birthday party, I am excited about this, but wish I had more time to prepare.

The rest of May and all of June are also packed with activities, but they are largely of the fun kind and none of them require me to prepare anything. Its the preparation that gets to me. Before being diagnosed with ADHD, I had no preparation skills whatsoever. No matter what my task, I would put off dealing with it until the very last second, then realize I could not possibly get it done, and then drop out or submit it late, depending on the task in question. It got to a point where I would sign up for something or receive an assignment and just assume I would not get it done. It was an awful way to live.

Since ADHD treatment entered my life, things have improved dramatically. I now approach every task knowing I will finish it on time, one way or another. I am also much, much better at planning and starting things early so that I don't have to do everything at the last minute. Still, I do a lot more at the last minute than I would like. I am not facing a single task this month for which I am 100% unprepared, but I definitely feel like I could be more prepared for most of them.

When I face months like this, I always wonder- does this happen to everyone? Is there anyone who manages to organize their tasks and stick to a schedule so that they have little or no stress at the last minute? If so, please let me know, because I would love to meet this person and learn his or her secrets.

Back to studying and bike riding!