The Versatile Blogger

Big thanks to Julie over at You Just Have to Tri! for tagging me with the Versatile Blogger award. The award I actually should get is the Lazy Blogger award, but this one sounds a lot better. These "tag" posts are fun because you can learn a lot about your fellow bloggers, things they probably wouldn't have thought to share.

There are a few basic rules with this award:
1. You have to thank the giver, and provide a link to that person's post. Thanks Julie! I love your blog and especially the recent pics of your adventure race. Hopefully we can meet soon, since we live in the same general area (I should have met Julie already, but remember what I said above about being Lazy).
2. Share 7 random facts about yourself.
3. Award 15 other newly discovered blogs the same award.

Here are some random facts about me that I don't think I've shared here before:

1. I want to organize a 5K with my brother and sister and all seven of our first cousins on my dad's side of the family at some point. Some would walk, some would run, but all would finish and it would be a great family reunion. We might even let some of our parents do it too! :^)

2. Speaking of cousins, I have seven first cousins on my dad's side and seven on my mom's side. But my own kids have only one first cousin on my husband's side and only one-on-the-way on my side. I love cousins. My first cousins are all wonderful, and I have tons of awesome second and even third ones that I grew up with, too. Cousins are like brothers and sisters who don't live with you. I hope my kids eventually have more.

3. I've lived in Missouri, Texas, New York City and now Colorado. That's the Midwest, the South, the East Coast and the West. I think people from the Midwest are the most unpretentiously friendly people in the country (but maybe I'm biased because Missouri is where I grew up). Where do you think the friendliest folks in the USA are?

4. I lived overseas in Paris briefly in college, for a year in Russia for the Peace Corps and have traveled in Canada, Mexico, Western Europe, China and Costa Rica. There were fantastic things about all of these places, but I think the most laid-back people were in Canada and the most "instantly family-style friendly" were in Russia. Where do you think the friendliest folks in the world are?

5. If I could have any talent I desired (aside from being a faster runner, of course), I would wish for singing talent. I love to sing, but only my kids seem to enjoy hearing me do it. :^)

6. My grandmother used to say I'd better take my calcium or she would haunt me after she died (she was always worried about us girls developing osteoporosis). Now that she has been gone for three years, I wish she would haunt me, calcium or no. I miss her.

7. I think I'm probably done having kids. If I change my mind about that down the road, I will adopt.

OK! And now for the newly discovered blogs. I've found a lot of great new-to-me ones in recent weeks (maybe you've been reading these for a long time). Here they are, in alpha order, with one beyond the required 15:

Adventure Is Out There
average girl doing average things
Colorado Runner
Getting It Done on the Run
Just a Colorado Gal
luminosity
Miles, Miles and More Miles.....
Mostly Fit Mom
Pace of Me
Run the Long Road
Run With the Black Knight
Runner Woman
Runnin' From the Law
Running Around on Empty
Running On Words
Will Race for Carbs

Can't wait to see what you post, should you accept this tag. (I have a lot of old favorites, too, and probably left some of the new ones I've been reading off that list. Apologies to all of you--my Google Reader now has 88 subscriptions, I get several via email and I do my best to keep up, but I know I miss things sometimes.)

Quick Running Update: We've been having gorgeous weather out here, and the leaves are the most magnificent I've seen in my years in Colorado. Yesterday I had an hour and 45 minute run on the schedule. I slept in a bit (7:30!! that's late in my house!!), and felt grumpy when I started. I'm reading an intriguing but disturbing book right now, and it was on my mind. So much so that the first five miles of this run were over before I knew it. And suddenly I realized I was really enjoying myself.

In the end, I did 11.1 miles in the allotted time. I didn't go over, tempted as I was. I'm trying to stick with the instructions in my McMillan plan to the letter. Early last week Greg McMillan posted two quotes on his Twitter feed that I  need to remember:

"The hardest concept for distance runners? The process of becoming a better runner is loooong, not short. This runs counter to modern life."

"Fitness is built over time. Period. It can't be wished for or rushed. Patience grasshopper. Build toward the future."

This grasshopper is building. And trying to be patient.