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Current temperature in Chicago: -10F (without wind chill...-29 with wind chill)
Current temperature in Antarctica: 37F (24 with wind chill)
I understand that Antarctica is currently in its "warm season," but really...this is a bit absurd. Schools were canceled today because of the cold! However, let me assure you that I was at work at 5:30am, getting ready to serve you pancakes. People must eat...and we have really good pancakes.
The Chicago Tribune posed the question Why do we live here? and got some interesting answers. I personally liked the answer about calling home to say it's "cold" and about having to "put on a windbreaker." My kind of weather! I think that the summers/springs/falls are so nice that we forget how awful winter is, even if it manages to last for six months out of the year...like it did last year, I promise.
Anyway, I may be crazy on occasion, but I'm not insane, so no, I didn't even bother trying to run today. Three miles was the plan for today, but I like my toes too much to lose them over a little three mile run.
Or I'm just a wimp.
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When I went to bed last night, I thought that my excitement for today would be limited to my trip to the dentist to get my teeth cleaned...thrilling, I know. However, I awoke to the sounds of the answering machine picking up a call, and it was a nurse recruiter from a hospital that I had applied to! I didn't rush to pick up the phone seeing as the "I sound like I just woke up" voice is not the best foot to put forward, so I waited ten minutes and called back. They're opening up a new unit and wanted to know if I was interested...of course!! They're working on the details with the nurse managers of the unit, but they said they'd get back to me.
Now, this is the part where you're like, "Wait...I thought the title of this post was 'Interview!!!' and it doesn't sound like you have an interview." Just wait, my friends.
Excited about real human contact with a human resources department, I headed out on my run and went about my day. Just as I was about to leave for the dentist, my phone rings again! Noticing the Philadelphia area code, I pick up the phone, and it's another nurse recruiter from a different hospital who is interested in interviewing me! It's for a job I applied to last night, and I have an interview set up for late next week!! WOO!!
Of course, I still have the phone call from this morning lingering in my mind, so I debate calling them back to let them know of my new-found availability in Philly next week (seeing as I'm in Chicago, it's not exactly a routine hang out spot for me). Hospital nurse recruiter #1 said that would be great and that they were looking to interview next week anyway, so they'll get back to me in the next couple days about setting something up.
YESSSSSS. I've been worrying lately because I've sent out 15-20 applications and had yet to hear back from anyone. No replies. No contact. If crickets could chirp from my computer, they would have been. Now, two in one day! I am SO excited!!
So excited, in fact, that the 10 degree weather with -1 wind chill didn't hold me back from getting my run in today! I pondered scratching the run since, well, -1 is COLD!! However, it didn't seem windy so I figured I might as well go for...tricked myself using the old "You can always turn around and come back if it's really that bad" line. I've never actually turned around once I get started...starting is the hard part!
So anyway, I bundled up and here's what we came up with:
Wednesday, January 14
5.04 miles in 42:48, avg pace of 8:30
The roads are covered in a new layer of powdered snow, compliments of last night and this morning, so it was impossible to have any sort of good footing or push off. Hence, the slower pace (complete with a 9:05 mile in the middle!), but I should be doing some of my runs lower anyway, so not a problem! Also, I enjoyed the funny looks drivers gave me when I was running...gotta love it.
As a final thought...I survived the dentist, and no cavities in this mouth!
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Today began what I like to call the "Annual Chicago Deep Freeze," when temperatures soar to high in the single digits! Wind chills below zero! This happens every year for about two weeks in January (and for only two weeks, if we're lucky), and it is my absolute least favorite part of the year. The most miserable time of my life last year involved waiting for the train in the subzero temperatures, gripping my coffee in hopes that my fingers wouldn't fall off, all while anticipating the extra-cold "woosh" as the train went by on its way to stop. Glad I don't have to do that anymore, let me tell you.
Seeing as today's high of 12 is going to beat Thursday's high of 6, I figured I'd move my runs around a little. It also helps that I work on Thursday and I don't work today...either way, running today seemed like a good option. Only three miles, so the time spent in the cold would be minimal.
Tuesday, January 13
3.02 miles in 23:57, avg pace of 7:56
It took a little while to get going because I was trying to figure out my footing the snow. I can't believe I'm about to say this, but the snow on the streets made this run much harder than the cold. We had a "blizzard warning" last night, which is a term I've never heard before despite living in Chicago for the past 17 (almost 18! yikes!) years. Apparently the term "blizzard" was in relation the wind that would be blowing the snow around, not that actual snow itself. Lo and behold, I think the wind was fine and we only got about two-three more inches of snow.
This would not normally be a problem because that is fairly minimal snowfall, but it was very fine powdered snow, which blows back onto the road after the snow plows have gone through. Therefore, the road was still covered, and thus not conducive to the excellent footing that I generally like to have while running. Another reason why I like summer so much better!
Anyway, the run went well, and I lifted and did some crunches when I got home. "Lifting" refers to what I used to do while on the high school cross country/track team, and even then I'm not sure I was doing it right. Some day I'll actually have someone who knows better teach me what exercises would be beneficial.
On a much warmer note, I just bought my plane ticket to MIAMI for a cruise that I'm going on with my boyfriend in a couple weeks. Highs in the 80's, woo!
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Today was my designated "long run" day since marathon training should be occurring right about now. Still undecided about which marathon, as I'm probably going to run with at least my boyfriend and maybe a couple of his friends. I think the two in the running (haha!) are the Delaware Marathon or the Pocono Marathon, both of which are on May 17th. I'm worried that it might be kind of warm, and the last thing I want to do is run a hot marathon, especially after my experience at the Chicago Marathon in 2007! We shall see, I suppose.
Run for the day:
Monday, January 12th
9.1 miles in 1:11:03, avg pace of 7:48
I was only going to run eight miles today, but it wasn't nearly as cold as I expected it to be, so I added on an extra mile. One aspect of training that I really need to buy into is the idea of doing long runs SLOW. I'm not even sure my marathon pace will be 7:48, so I obviously shouldn't be doing long runs at that pace! I always start off with good intentions, but then I feel good and one mile just gets faster than the one before. Here are my splits, case in point: 8:04, 8:06, 7:57, 7:55, 7:42, 7:46, 7:35, 7:38, 7:30. At least I can say I felt good at the end.
I'm really excited to watch The Bachelor tonight! I admittedly am a HUGE fan of some reality television, and I really like The Bachelor even though the engagements inevitably don't work out. We used to have "bach parties" in college where some of my friends and I would get together and watch every week...and we could each pick out our favorite girls, of course. I think I secretly want to go on all the amazing dates that people on the show get to go on...helicopter rides, ITALY, dinner on a battleship, etc. You have to admit, that'd be pretty awesome.
Stayed tuned for updates on Chicago's possible "blizzard warning," whatever that may mean...
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This was an exciting weekend for me! My graduation was from nursing school was on Friday, so my boyfriend came in for the weekend, landing on Thursday. I was also being inducted into Sigma Theta Tau, the nursing honor society, and that ceremony was Friday morning. Of course, Chicago was hit with a huge snow storm beginning on Friday morning and lasting into Saturday, so it took over two hours to get from my house in the suburbs into Chicago! I missed the "orientation" part of the honor society induction, but many other people were late so it ended up being fine.
Here's a picture after my induction into the honor society:
Sigma Theta Tau provided us with a lunch for us and our families afterward the induction, which was catered from a place called Pompeii. Hence, we had pasta, salads, and cannolis! Yum. We had some time to kill before the graduation ceremony in the afternoon, so I gave my parents and James a tour of the school. The school is rather small and is pretty much only on two floors of the building, so it was a rather short tour.
We headed over to where graduation was to be held, and it's a good thing we got there when we did because the seats were a hot commodity! My class only had about 64-65 people in it, so it was a small ceremony. I had applied for an award/scholarship, and I won it, so I had to stand in the front of the room where they read part of my application essay! I do not like being the center of attention, so it was nerve-wracking for me even though I didn't have to say anything! However, the award came with a nice check, so I was able to grin and bear it. We selected one of our fellow classmates to give a speech, during which she captured what we learned throughout the year, as well as highlighted several funny moments which had the room all laughing...excellent speech! It was then time to get our diplomas and nursing pins!!
Here's me with my diploma, pin, and honor cords post-ceremony:
This diploma is a bit smaller than my one from Maryland, but that's not an issue! I ended up graduating summa cum laude, which means I was pretty much at the top of my class! I studied so hard for the past year...I definitely earned it!We went out to the Cheesecake Factory to celebrate, and I'm going on a Carribean cruise at the end of the month with my boyfriend, during which I will be in full relaxation mode! I can't wait to get out of the cold and into the 80 degree weather! In the meantime, the job hunt is in full force!
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Okay, that was plenty of life updates...yay! I didn't run on Friday because I was so busy, and no run on Saturday either because it snowed most of the day and the roads weren't clear at all! We probably have about 8-10 inches of snow on the ground, and we supposed to get 1-3 inches more tomorrow...
I did get a run in today after I took James to the airport.
Sunday, 1/11
6.08 miles in 46:51, avg pace of 7:42
The neighborhood roads are pretty much clear of the snow, but my running routes are limited because the sidewalks on the major roads are covered in snow. Today's run was good with each mile getting faster than the one before, not on purpose, but I have a tendency to do that...
We're supposed to get our annual January deep-freeze later this week, so we'll see how that unfolds...
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I work at an AWESOME breakfast/lunch restaurant as a server (who sometimes hosts!), and it's really quite fantastic. I love the people I work with, I love the job...it's really just a great place. The food is pretty good too! Anyway, everyone there knows that I like to run, so the other day one of the servers asked me what my favorite distance to run is. I responded with my usual, "Well, I ran the mile and two mile in high school..." which I realize isn't relevant at all anymore since I graduated from high school five and a half years ago.
This got me thinking...what really is my favorite distance to run? Not in terms of "racing," which I really haven't done in a long time...probably since high school, but in terms of just heading out for a run. I decided that somewhere around 7-8 miles is perfect. Why, you might ask? Let's consider the following:
1. Three miles is probably the shortest distance I consider running when I go out for a run. However, by the time I get warmed up, the run is pretty much over, so it really never feels good. Also, since it's such a short distance, I think it should be over before I know, which usually means that it will drag on forever.
2. Four-five/six miles...okay, not too bad. Five is definitely better than four, and it's long enough that I'm warmed up and feel good, but it's over pretty quick.
3. Seven-eight miles...perfect! I feel like this is a great range to get warmed up and then feel good about the run for awhile, but I don't feel tired from the run. I generally run between 7:30-8 minute miles, so these runs take around an hour, which is a good amount of time.
4. I'll just lump nine and above into one category. Around ten miles is where some effort may be necessary, and there's the whole mind game associated with the double digits. I may start to feel the results of the work that I'm putting in, and I'll most likely be tired after the run, especially if it's more than ten miles. Not that I don't like running long (obviously since I do the whole marathon thing!), but it's not quite as fantastic as the 7-8 mile range.
Now, onto my runs for the week thus far:
Tuesday, 1/6
3.05 miles in 24:09, avg pace of 7:55
Wednesday, 1/7
5.09 miles in 39:40, avg pace of 7:47
Thursday, 1/8
3.04 miles in 24:37, avg pace of 8:05
We got some snow yesterday, so the sidewalks are still covered. I run on the street except on the busy roads where I take up the sidewalk. Running on snow not only slows you down, but it is a lot of work! The slowest part of my run was on the snowy sidewalk, but I definitely felt like I was working harder. I really need to move to Florida or something!
That's all for now! My boyfriend is flying in tonight because my GRADUATION from nursing school is tomorrow! I don't think it's nearly as exciting as my graduation from the University of Maryland, since that took four years and this one only took one year, but it will nice to be officially finished with Rush forever.
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Happy new year!! Let me tell you...no one is more excited than me that 2008 is OVER. I started nursing school in January 2008, and it was full speed until Christmas. It was both the slowest and fastest year I've ever had...if you had asked me in March if I ever thought it would end, I would have said never! However, I made it and graduation is on January 9th, which will be super exciting to see everyone all dressed up and to see their families that I've heard about throughout the year.
Currently on the hunt for a job, which isn't going so well despite the fact that everyone still believes that there is a nursing shortage. Not quite the case with the current economy, so I'm hoping that January will bring more luck for my job search.
Onto running! I'm looking at running a marathon in May, but which one is yet to be determined, so I kind of started "training" just in case I decide to go with a May 3rd marathon. Currently in the running are the New Jersey Marathon, the Poconos Marathon, and the Delaware Marathon. Since my base mileage isn't too high due to the craziness of December, I'm currently going with Hal Higdon's Intermediate I plan. I used his novice plan for both of my previous marathons and they turned out alright, so we'll stick with that for now.
That being said, here are my runs for the week!
Monday, 12/29
4.04 miles in 32:01, average pace of 7:56
Tuesday, 12/30
5.05 miles in 39:36, average pace of 7:50
I had take my parents' car into the mechanic, but no one was around to take me...so I just ran back. Look how convenient running is. :)
Wednesday, 12/31 - NYE!
3.04 miles in 23:51, average pace of 7:50
Thursday, 1/1 - First run of the new year, supposed to be at "marathon pace," and I haven't figured out what that is yet...
5.11 miles in 38:39, average pace of 7:34
Sunday, 1/4 - First long run!
8.06 miles in 1:04:30, average pace of 8:00
Totals for the week!
25.30 miles in 3:18:37, average pace of 7:51...woo!
That's all for now...
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Yikes, I'm really bad at this whole blog thing! I've been running (a little), but with the freezing temperatures (high of 16?? what??) and two jobs where I spend all my time on my feet...I've been slacking a little. I'm currently at the end of my nursing program, which means that I spend three weeks following a nurse and working her schedule. Mine happens to work on the weekends (plus a couple shifts during the week), so I spend 7a-7p every Saturday and Sunday at the hospital. Those days are so long! I don't understand how people do three 12 hour shifts in a row because I am exhausted after the two shifts. I'm still working at my part time job (server at a breakfast/lunch restaurant), so I'm keeping busy without all the studying.
That being said, only three more 12 hour shifts at the hospital, and I'm DONE with nursing school! This has been a long, long year, and I'm excited for it to come to a close. The job search isn't going so well. Most people tell me I'll get a job fairly easily because of the "nursing shortage," but let me be the first to tell you that the nursing shortage isn't what people think it is! I'm looking for a job in a big city that is saturated with nurses, and therefore looking to hire people with experience (because they can be picky about who they hire). New grad nurses go through anywhere from a six to twelve (or more!) week orientation, which is not cost-effective for hospitals, so of course they would take someone with experience over a new grad. That doesn't work so well for me! Luckily I can't really start working until March-ish (thanks to the need to have a license to practice, of course), so I still have time to find a job.
Christmas is coming up so soon! I've barely started shopping, which could spell trouble since I wanted to do a lot of it online...shipping might be troublesome at this point! One of my favorite parts of Christmas is the cookies...every year my friends all get together and we decorate sugar cookies, and I'm really excited to continue the tradition this year. Some people are more creative than others, which makes for a good time. I can't wait to see the creations that we have this year!
Alright, time to browse the internet for some Christmas shopping...hopefully I find some good presents!
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Yikes, it's been a month since I posted last! I took my last finals just before Thanksgiving, so it was a rough November with finishing up my final papers, classes, clinicals, and exams! My running slacked off a bit since I was so busy with everything, but I've picked it back up so I'm happy about that. No more finals, and all I have left for nursing school is role transition, where I've been assigned to a nurse on a medical floor. It wasn't my first choice, but I should be able to see a lot and learn a lot. I'm a quiet person, and my preceptor is supposed to push me to be more assertive, call the docs, etc, so that will be good for me.
Thanksgiving was good! My boyfriend came in for the weekend, so it was fun to see him since it had been awhile. We ran the local Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving. The weather was actually rather nice (about 35 degrees, little wind, no snow!), which is a far cry from what it has been in the past. We ran the five mile option, and of course I checked out past results to see what the competition might be like. I figured I could probably place in my age group, maybe overall, but neither of us had been running much so we didn't want to push it. However, that went out the window pretty quickly! Our miles were as follows:
1: 7:27
2: 7:16
3: 7:20
4: 7:28
5: 6:43
The last mile actually showed up on my garmin as being 0.96...oops! Overall pace was 7:19...pretty good for so little running! We hung around after the race to wait for awards since we figured I was in the running (haha!) for an award. However, they announced that something got messed up with the computer software for the chip timing, so they didn't have results! The website says they've been trying to get them back, but haven't had any luck so far. It doesn't really matter that much, but I rarely race, and it would have been fun to get a medal!
We got our first snow of the season yesterday, and I headed out for a run today. The roads were pretty clear, but there was some slush. I'm trying to adjust to the cold...no luck so far, although it's not as bad as I think it will be. Four miles today in 31:35, average pace of 7:51. Still checking out spring marathons...not sure which to do yet!
No more classes means no more studying, so I'm going to relax and enjoy it! Awesome.
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I'm really excited for it to be November because that means that it's my last month of nursing classes!! I'm in an accelerated second degree BSN program, which means that everyone in my program has a prior bachelors degree in something else, then we all decided that we wanted to be nurses. They took a two year program and crammed it into one year, so it's been a busy 2008 for me. We take our last finals right before Thanksgiving, and then in December we have "role transition" where we work one-on-one with a nurse to help transition us into being nurses on our own. I'm still waiting to find out what area of the hospital I'm working, but I'm really hoping for the emergency room or an intensive care unit.
Anyway! Onto running. I did a long run of twelve miles yesterday, and since I went running in the afternoon, I thought I would run into a lot of trick or treaters. It was gorgeous here...almost 70! Not too many kids out trick or treating, but I did get to see some princesses and lions. I didn't really do anything for Halloween...one of my friends wanted to go to a haunted house, but we just ended up going out to dinner...Buffalo Wild Wings! :)
My run: 12 miles in 1:35:40, average pace of 7:56. Felt good, tried to keep the miles above 8:00 for the sake of the long run, but I just went with it.
I ran five miles today after work...average pace of 7:58, tried to keep it easy.
Total mileage for the week: 35.5! I'm still deciding on a spring marathon, but it looks like I've got a pretty good base going so far.
Time for some studying and/or paper writing...we'll see how motivated I am tonight!
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