Half Marathon

I can't believe its been 2 weeks since I ran my first half marathon! What a wonderful/hard/exhausting/pink experience! I'm so glad I did it... and I've picked out my next one - the Diva run in September!

Trixie sent me some amazing hot pink shoe laces that arrived just in time for the race! I LOVE them so much.



These are the amazing ladies I trained with. Without them, I would not be running. Seriously.



Josh bought me a glitter pink running skirt. Pheobe agreed to get one to run in too (team-sparkle.com - check them out!) but we forgot that Pheobe is many many inches taller than me. So we looked a little different in our skirts... but still AWESOME. We also thought it was going rain... but we had clear skies. But we were dressed to weather whatever storm was coming (I'm so glad it didn't rain! Its a miracle!)



Here is the start line! It felt like hours waiting to finally run. We were in the 25th corral - so we did have a little time to wait.



At mile 6 there was a terrible hill! Thankfully, Josh and my wonderful parents were waiting there to give me the boost I needed to run the whole hill. After running for approximately 2 hours and 50 minutes (yep, we weren't that fast, but I'm ok with that) we finished! Around mile 10 I was done. I was sure that I had blisters (I didn't, I just broke a little mentally) and I was so so tired. You couldn't see the finish line - it was up hill and it seemed so far. But I ran the whole way and crossed the finish line!



Our friend Emily had brunch waiting for us when we finished. We had so many friends waiting to celebrate with us - it was so great!

I still can't believe that I did this! I'm so glad I did!

Rape Culture

Since seeing the news coverage of the Steubenville rape case, I've had a post rattling around my brain about the rape culture in which we live - and bemoaning the conviction of 2 rapists because their lives are "now ruined" only furthers the case.

I came across this article that clearly outlines the many examples to make the point that yes, indeed we live in a rape culture. There are many great (appalling) examples, but this really hit home to me:

Rape culture is every time we look the other way when sex is used as a weapon, or to shame someone, keep someone submissive, or marginalize someone. It can be as simple as a co-worker sexually harassing you, and then telling you to “learn to take a joke” when you tell them to shut the f*ck up already. At a time when rape can be documented and spread across Facebook, Twitter, Reddit and basically anywhere online, it is crucial that we have these conversation and condemn every perpetrator. 40 years ago rape was simply swept under the carpet, an upsetting thing no one wanted to deal with. If now, in the digital age, we accept it as gossip, as entertainment, as something that just happens to that girl everyone makes fun of, what we’re really saying is that we‘re fine with it. And we are absolutely, 100%, without a doubt, NOT fine with it.

And then, so you don't despair, read this. Culture CAN be changed. There  are real actions that can be taken to change the rape culture in which we live, including:

• Understand that if you are trying to prove something about yourself by degrading others, you are contributing to a culture in which violence is inevitable.

• Don't make light of talk that degrades girls or women including labels like "slut," "tramp," and the like. Rape thrives in environments where it is normalized and thus seems justifiable. Rape thrives when we dehumanize and categorize girls/women.

• Don't turn a blind eye when a girl/woman is being harassed (spoken to in a derogatory manner). Speak up or hang out with better guys. If this behavior caused men to lose all of their friends, they may not engage in it. If there are more good guys than bad ones, prove it.

• If you see a situation where someone looks like they are going to harass or possibly assault someone, try to get them out of that situation or if it is safer, try to get the potential victim out of that situation.

• Think about the media you consume -- from music to sports casting to comedy. Yes, there are lots of ways of justifying listening to outlandishly sexist media, but come on. You choose to consume it; you legitimate its messages.

• Teach your brothers and/or sons to respect all people and that no girl or woman ever deserves to be violated.

Happy International Women's Day 2013!

Its International Women's Day 2013, and do I have some great readings and viewings for you!

"The story of women's struggle for equality belongs to no single feminist nor to any one organization but to the collective efforts of all who care about human rights" Gloria Steinem

Women across the world are doing some remarkable things:

Check out this slideshow from Reuters.

Read about women serving in the Peace Corps - Our Best Diplomats: Women in the Peace Corps 

Learn about the work this doctor is doing to save lives in Syria.

Watch this video from UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet

[embed]http://youtu.be/mEzfI8wMjqg[embed]

And this one: Women as Agents of Change

[embed]http://youtu.be/2mVP1wuMHsY[embed]

 

Its V-Day!

Today is V-Day. Not just Valentine's Day, but V-Day, a global movement to end violence against women. Today is V-Day’s 15th Anniversary, marked by a global movement that is  underway for ONE BILLION women and those who love them to WALK OUT, DANCE, RISE UP, and DEMAND an end to this violence. ONE BILLION RISING will move the earth, activating women and men across every country. V-Day wants the world to see our collective strength, our numbers, our solidarity across borders.

This video gave me chills!  Hope you enjoy! How will you celebrate V-Day? Join a rising, educate your self, or do something kind for someone else. It all makes our world a better place. Happy V-Day!
[embed]http://youtu.be/fL5N8rSy4CU[/embed]

We've got a deal!

Here's the post I've been promising that contains my lucky finds.  I wish the collage were better.  But until I'm not too cheap to buy Photoshop or I figure out Picasa (dang it!  shoulda sprang for a Mac.... grr....), this is what you'll get.



(From top left to bottom right): TJ Maxx 1-5, Target 6, Salvation Army 7

1.  Pink make-up sponge applicator:  I own another one of these, but from Target and in a blue color but the pink one was a steal and an impulse buy.  (Those shelves they have that form the check-out line are the DEVIL!  I ALWAYS manage to find something I don't need.  The people who do consumer spending research and store planning REALLY know their stuff.  $4.99

2.  NOW Ginger Molasses Cookies: I've had these before but when I saw them again, I couldn't pass up the chewy goodness inside.  I LOVE TJ Maxx for yummy food finds.  $?

3.  Mama Tina's Organic Quinoa Flour: Dr. J got me a "Baking with Whole Grains" cookbook for Christmas this year and while I've used whole wheat flour and spelt flour before, I couldn't pass up quinoa flour.  $3.99


4.  Co-Lab Wallet: Oh this pretty baby just jumped out at me!  I must say I am a TOTAL sucker for anything turquoise/cerulean/ocean colored.  This wallet is not real leather (doesn't smell like it) but it is SOOOOFT.  I didn't really need a new wallet but I knew for the color alone, it was a must have or I'd regret it.  $12.99


5.  Baggallini Special Edition New Yorker Bagg: This crossbody bag is not usually something I buy.  It's not my style.  But we are taking a family trip to Disneyland in the near future and I wanted a small but roomy bag i could wear across by body and carry essentials for the park.  I had my mind set on this beauty from Fossil, I really could justify the $178 leather bag purchase for an amusement park.  Plus, is leather really practical for carry crap that could ruin it or worse yet, get ruined on a ride?  (it would be just my luck, no doubt for it to get TRASHED at DLand.)  I searched everywhere online for the perfect replica of the Fossil, just not a leather one.  And the Maxx saved me.  It's roomy enough to fit a small wallet, tissues, hand sanitizer, small package of baby wipes, chapstick, small tueb of sunblock, etc that I had to nab it.  When was my luck going to go my way again?  Thank you, thank you TJ Maxx for sparing my bank account.... for the time being.  $29.99


6.  Navajo Print Belt:  Oh Target.  How I hate to love you.  I normally drop serious cash without even blinking an eye the second I walk in that holy hell hole but I have been trying to be more of a friend to my budget than normal with baby 3 on the way.  So, I scour the clearance racks first.  Then hit the normal priced stuff.  I am a real sucker for the RED clearance tag tell me how much the item used to cost and how much it costs me NOW.  Sometimes, the deal is crap and other times, it's not worth missing.  This belt was it.  Normally priced at $12.99, it was so dirt cheap I had to restrain myself from buying all of them.  Just because.  The print is a fun one for spring and I've been rocking it over my baby bump to brighten my very dreary winter.  $3.47


7.  Red Mirror:  I went overboard the other day and bought EJune like 10 sets of hair bows and clips from F21.  (How can you resist their adorable yet INEXPENSIVE hair accessories?!) From $1.80-$2.80 for a set of 2 hair clips with flowers or bows or different colors, prints and textures, I'm like a kid in a candy store.  They stay really well in EJ's thin hair and they are not completely overwhelming that sometimes we but two, side by side in her hair.  Ok, so onto the mirror.  I saw a fun tutorial on Pinterest for displaying and organizing your little girl's hair clips.  Some are BUTT U-G-L-Y so I searched til I found the perfect one.  (I lost the link to the tutorial but it's simple enough and I'll post my own).  I knew the exact frame I wanted and the one time I walk into the Salvation Army, I find it.  It was $1.39 but then that day was an extra % off so I paid $1.09 with tax!  Can't beat that!

I hope bargain hunting is in your near future and luck on your side when you do go.  I think I'm a fan for life.

Busy

Big thanks to Trixie for carrying this blog for the last few months. I don't know whats happened to me, but sitting down at my computer while at home has become impossible. It may be because I'm not home much - I feel  like I have something every night, and while its all good things, and I feel happier than I've even been, its made it hard to do the things I usually like to do while home - blog, read blogs, cook food, and clean my apartment (well, I don't LIKE to clean, but I NEED to :)

I am committing to do better - if it means I take my lunch break to blog, maybe thats what I do. Or instead of vegging, watching TV after an evening run, I make myself sit down and share something. I'm going to try to be more present.

Talk to you all soon :)

Let's make a deal!

I don't ever recall my mother being a bargain shopper.  Well bargains, in this case being: yard sales, thrift stores, etc.  She was good for good deals on food (typical Asian mother) but we never shopped at thrift stores or yard sales, even when money was tight while growing up or even after my parents divorced.  So for me, shopping yard sales, thrift stores, or even places like TJ Maxx or Ross are difficult at times because I never learned the patience that's required for deal hunting.  I also get easily discouraged if I immediately don't find what I'm looking for.  I have friends who live in thrift stores and they find AMAZING things.  I'd like to find some amazing things.  But I do, at this moment, feel my luck is changing.  Maybe it's karma's way of repaying me after a horrible week or maybe I'm becoming more patient with it.  But now that I've mentioned it here, it may turn sour again.   I always blamed my bad bargain luck on the fact that "I was just meant to pay full price".  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE, no I ADORE a great deal.  I'm just picky.  Who says you have to settle with a deal?

Well, here's to hoping my luck continues.  At least with deal hunting.

(See the next post for details on my finds this week!)