Currently: April

Current Book - The Boleyn Inheritance by Phillipa Gregory **so far, so good. There is just something about the horrid nature of Henry VIII and all the backstabbing and lying associated with his reign that is just fascinating.

Current Running Path - 

Joaquin Miller Park

Current Drink - Iced coffee. The perfect after-run drink. Or anytime drink, really. 

Current Excitement - May. It's going to be full of fun things! Races, birthdays, Mother's day and vacations! Every weekend is already booked! 

Current fashion trend - What's up with the floral stuff? That was cool when I was a kid but it's not the most attractive pattern. I can't believe it's back in style. 

Current Favorite Blog/Website - This article in Runners World. See the photo down at the bottom of the article? That's the group I ran with and I am in the photo, next to the yellow sign! Pretty cool if you ask me! 

Current Garden Item - Tomato plants. Apparently a lot of the ones from last year self seeded themselves and they are coming back this year by themselves! We are going to have a ton of tomatoes.

Current Love -Watermelon. After a warm day, it's so nice to have a cold piece of watermelon.

Current Food - Salads. Every week I make up four of them for lunches and sometimes I even end up eating them for dinner as well! My favorite lately? Beets, goat cheese, quinoa, spinach, corn and garbanzos! Yum.

Current Indulgence - Mochas! Remember the coffee station? Well, now we also have one of those Nespresso machines and I am loving a homemade mocha from time to time. 

Currently Pondering - Why don't you have to refrigerate ranch dressing before you open it? I mean, it's still made out of diary products, isn't it? 

Current Mood - Great! The weekend was full of beautiful weather and a few great trail runs, brunch with friends and walks about town. I couldn't ask for anything more!

Current New Find - Spitz Chili Lime. If you like sunflower seeds you should try these, because they are good! 

Current Outfit - 

#BostonStrongSF

Current Peeve - All my socks are getting holes in them. I even clipped my toenails super short and bought new socks but after only a couple wearings, they are getting holey already! 

 

Current Song - I have been listening to the Juanes station on Pandora a lot. It reminds me of traveling in South America.  

Current Triumph - I picked my first veggies this week! The radishes are already ready even though they are only about a month old. They are super spicy though! Anyone know how to tone down the spice of a radish? 

 

Current TV Show - Actually I DVRed some movies, but none of them have really been that good.

Current Wish-List - A pair of earphones where I can change songs without having to get my phone out. I haven't really made a good playlist yet and so I keep having to listen to songs I would rather skip.

Currently Delaying - Booking a flight for a race later this year... I keep hoping the price will go down but it's almost time to bite the bullet and just do it. I'm sure that as soon as I book it, the price will drop. 

What is your current triumph? Have you read any good books lately? Have you joined in on the floral trend?

Then & Now: April

You know I have to say it: I can't believe it's almost May! May is one of my favorite months of the year; It is Spring time, the flowers are blooming, the weather is great and it's my birthday month. You can't ask for much more than that. However, April is good too! This year has differed a lot from last year in the fact that I have been in one place for an entire month! Usually I move around a lot, be it for work or for fun. So, here is April's monthly comparison of the Who, What and Where of 2011 vs 2012!

The Who: 

 2011: Animals!

2012: The Parentals, My Other Mother, Little A, The Cat

The What: 

Books: 

2011: 4 / 2012: 6

Train Like a Mother by Dimity McDowell & Sarah Bowen Shea (review here): This was an easy to read training book for runners, both beginners or advanced. It was filled with funny stories and antidotes from runners polled. 

Ape House by Sarah Gruen: This was an interesting story about Bononbos (similar to chimps) who can communicate with humans through sign language. The two main characters are a newspaper reporter and the woman who taught the bonobos to speak. Their paths cross in a story that is amusing, enlightening and fun.

The Other Boleyn Girl by Phillipa Gregory: I read these out of order. Apparently this was number two. However, for my first Gregory, I liked it. I have heard great things about her, and they were no lie. I can't wait to read more of her books. This one was about the sister of Anne Boleyn, during the reign of Henry VIII. It was a great way for me to learn more about that time period while still engaging me in an interesting story.

You can see the others I've read here.

Running miles: 

2011: 0 / 2012: 113

Races: 

2011: 0 / 2012:4

Cherry Blossom 10 Mile
Jelly Bean 5k
Jelly Bean 10k
Grizzly Peak Trail Half

You can keep up with my training here and racing here.

 Hiking:

2011: in NZ

2012: in Oakland

Food: 

2011: On the road 

(pies , kimchi and street meat)

2012: At Home 

(White Bean Chicken Chili, Hummus, Granola)

The Where: 

2011: New Zealand, South Korea

2012: Washington DC, The Bay Area, Table Mountain

The verdict? Last year I ate out (and ate a lot of crap); This year I am eating much more healthy and having fun experimenting with some new recipes! I did more hiking last year, but more running this year! I'm exploring things on the local level this year and am loving it! And even though I only read a couple of books last month, I made up for it this month and am still on track for my 52 book reading goal!

How has your April gone this year? How did it differ from last year?

Currently: April

Current Book - The Guy Not Taken by Jennifer Weiner

Current Celebrity Crush - Peter Krause (Adam Braverman in Parenthood)

source

Current Drink - Zico Coconut Water

Current Excitement - Trail Racing! I had such a fun race last weekend, but more on that later!

Current fashion trend - flip flops -- that's as fashionable as I get!

Current Favorite Blog/Website - Self's Nutrition Values

Current Favorite Film - none, really. I saw Hugo and the Artist on the plane. They were both pretty good, but I wouldn't say they are my favorite.

Current Food - Lots of quinoa and tons of veggies! 

Current Guilty Pleasure - reading in the sun on the back porch

Current Indulgence - Pizza from the Cheese Board

Current Mood - tired


Current New Find - Cafe Biere in Emeryville -- Sunday Brunch with bottomless mimosas!

Current Outfit - jeans / sweater


Current Peeve - People on the escalator who stand two abreast and don't move out of your way when you are walking up or down them.

Current Song - anything by the Black Keys

Current Triumph - making a new recipe each week (and liking them!)

Current TV Show - Jeopardy (it's an old favorite!)

Current Wish-List - a house on the beach

Currently Delaying - putting money in my ROTH IRA for last year! I have 3 days left to do it! 


What are you currently up to?