Friday, February 22, 2008

Epic weekend!

What a really fantastic weekend! And not so much for the training, but just the fun and good times. If every weekend was like this, I wouldn't have any excuse to complain.

First off, the promised office-isms: The cafetorium let me "enjoy" three songs on Friday morning. I caught the end of that crappy Goo Goo Dolls song from the Meg Ryan dies/Nicholas Cage lives movie, then a jump into the way-back machine for "If this is it" by Huey Lewis & the News, followed by half of "Total eclipse of the heart". Yeah, chase that junk out of your head! The cafetorium also offers some interesting people watching opportunities. There is a lady that seems to consistently make the same order from the grill: 3 egg whites (very specific), scrambled with American cheese, and 2 links of breakfast sausage on the side. Does anyone else see this as totally freakin hilarious? Why bother with the egg whites at all? Whatever the chicken put in the yolks HAS to be better than whatever Jimmy Dean puts inside those sausage casings. And processed cheese is about as nutritious as deep-fried margarine. Whateva...

One of the stalls in the men's powder room is wheelchair accessible, but we have nobody on our floor using a wheelchair, so it's always up for grabs. And it's so luxurious and spacious! It reminds me of that Seinfeld episode where Kramer adopts 2 miles of 4-lane highway, then paints every other line black, making it into 2 wide lanes. It's a good thing there's not a TV and mini-fridge in there, or it would need a "Now Serving" number thingy.

After work we got Grace and met up with our good friends from Church for pizza at Brixx. We always love the food there, and it's served so fast. This time, fortunately, we arrived early so we seated in a reasonable amount of time. This is very important for Friday nights in Greenville: the lines grow very quickly, and 45 minute waits are pretty standard after about 6:30 PM. After dinner we went over to B&N for the kids to play, me to get a new triathlon magazine, and for everyone to get some Charbucks. (yes, Lisa, but any port in a storm will do) We ran into my teammate Chris and his lovely wife Janis, so naturally Chris and I talked about sport...again. We had just met at for lunch at the Thai place, and talked about nothing but training and racing. But, neither of us seem to ever tire of discussing it, so that's a good thing. All good things must end, and we made it home. Surprisingly, we all got into bed at a reasonable (for me) hour, and got a full night's sleep.

Saturday morning I slowly and begrudgingly got up and got ready for the CT group ride. It was very foggy, and parts of me were hoping it would be canceled. I got to the turn that leads to the shop, and the group was already taking off. I asked which group it was (A, B, or C) and the response was that everyone was together. Cool, so at least it wouldn't be a hammerfest. I joined in and enjoyed a nice ~25 mile ride at a reasonable pace, but with a few chances to sprint and climb with some of the fast dudes there. Teammate Pete Risell was also there, and we got a chance to chat a few times.

Afterwards it was the much anticipated pancake outing, though Grace didn't eat as much as we hoped. She fueled sufficiently for some house "shopping" and driving around, though. We ran some errands and measured the land we've been contemplating, then went downtown to Wild Wing for some tasty treats. Home at a decent time, we again were in bed at a reasonable hour.

Sunday was a great day at Church, followed by lunch at Panera (geez, do we eat out enough on the weekends?) and a trip to Target. Then, since Grace was not likely to take a nap, we all changed and headed for a fun family time in the pool at the Y. Grace had a BLAST, and didn't want to get out. Thankfully the pool was closing in a bit, so we used that. We wound up running into Pete again, who was there with his family having a swim day. We joked about the "training" we were getting in, and both half-heartedly committed to separately doing some sort of fitness activity later that day. It was great to meet them all, and we hope to see them again soon.

We stopped by the grocery store, then dinner was at Red Robin (no, I had salad) and Grace was starting to wear down. She ate like some kind of crazy eating machine, and we hoped for a food coma. Back at home I jumped on the trainer for an intense 30 minute ride. I should have waited for my food to settle more, but at least I got something in. After a while in front of the tube, Mendy and Grace headed up, but I followed about 30 minutes later. Grace finally went to sleep, and we again had a good night's sleep. Wow, 3 nights in a row! It doesn't make the mornings much more pleasant, though. Waking up sucks worse that going to sleep early.

So, in all, a fantastic weekend, lots of activity, and lots of eating out. Our neighbor saw us coming and going about 5 times over the weekend, and I'm sure he wonders what is wrong with us. It's pretty hard to actually catch us at home unless the timing is just right.

Hope you all had a great weekend, and sorry for the extremely long read on a Monday.

16 comments:

Wes said...

Sounds like a busy and fun filled weekend! And you got some good stuff in too :-) I rode Saturday morning in the 45 degree temps. It was good, but hard. Have a great week!

Marcy said...

Yeeee Hawwww I beat Bloglines. I was actually coming over to comment on "Granny" and noticed you had a new post. OMFG that is so wrong! Yet so funny! I already told Scott that the panties were in the mail, she better be on the lookout. I offered up the mailman as a test subject but I guess we can scratch that since you seems to be up to the task LOL

Yeah I never get that stuff with the lady in the cafeteria. It's pretty much the same as ordering 2 Big Macs 2 large fries and then a diet coke. Why bother? LOL

Sounds like a crazy good weekend homie! Definitely productive :-)

Nancy said...

Wow. just catching up - you two certainly pack the most possible in that you can, don't you? I loved the part about wanting Grace to fuel on pancakes!!

Loved all the pics from the races. You guys look awesome!! So fun.

The 311 Boys Mom said...

WOW, your weekend sounded like mine (without the 25 mile ride).lol

Lots of comings & going & eating out!!! I'm slackin on the training & finding myself wishing I had a runing friend, not for every run, but like once or twice a week maybe. I do have one friends, but she's a 7 m/m girl & i'm about double that.

Once the weather breaks, i hope to see whose the consistant runners in my new 'hood & maybe make a friend that way. Otherwise, I'll be forced to buy the jogging stroller for the 4 yr old to keep my company! :o)

Thanks for the advice- - -
Jen

Gotta Run..... said...

Now that is one busy weekend even with all of that eating out.

So are you going with the land?? I can't wait to hear what the plans are.

I am sure that Grace loved the pool time. Both you and Mendy are little fish so it is just in her blood. She will be doing kids Tri's before you know it :)

BTW - love the red running shoes. No problem picking you out in a crowd. Red fast is who you are!

Lily on the Road said...

That WAS a great weekend!! great that you had a lot of family time and you were able to get to church. We run early Sunday's so unfortunately, I miss my service, but the longer runs give me time to reflect.

OBTW, I added a wee ode to the Celery stick, just after you visited....thanks for stopping by,

ejoy your week

Neese said...

aw, glad it was such a great weekend for ya'll! hope to see you around sometime, maybe RR? Anne asked if I was running and I told her I would if she does so if she decides, then I guess that means I'm there lol...

Mendy said...

It WAS a fantastic weekend! We really should have done some house projects though. This week, for sure! I love how Grace was telling me in the pool "don't touch me, I'm swimming".

Marathoner in Training said...

Looking at what Mendy put down, it looks like your next weekend will be spent at Home Depot. Thanks for the recap.

A said...

Your weekend was crrrraaaaaaaaazy! You were definitely the man about town. Thanks for the comment on my site ... I updated it, but I'll have a lot more to say tomorrow. Big things goin' on in my world!

nwgdc said...

great stories! i love the egg white order...just watching my weight a bit...hilarious!

Jess said...

Just reading about all your activites makes me sleepy! Sheesh, you guys are busy!

Paul said...

Way too busy! Hopefully you'll be coming out in March.

J~Mom said...

HAHAHAHHAHA Any port, huh? That cracked me up!!

Good grief you guys are crazy busy! It sounds like us but I we are running from soccer game to soccer game. Then selling cookies. LOL

So how fast do you ride when the whole group rides together? Do you drop people?

Sounds exciting that you found some land you like! Do you guys think you are ready to buy?

I wonder what my neighbors think about us sometimes as well. Especially when I run around in a bike helmet.

Lori said...

At least you know that your neighbors don't think you are as crazy as Lisa's think she is ;) LOL

Sounds like a whirlwind weekend. You guys fit so much in and it sounds like a ton of fun!

My Life said...

Wasn't there a Seinfeld where George pretended he was handicapped so he could use the handicapped restroom? Ahhh, good stuff.

And don't make fun of the egg whites! While I see your point... I'm just as bad about ordering a cheeseburger and a diet coke. Got to keep a balance somewhere, right? ;)