Yoo 224 - My lips hurt real bad.

Now, now, let's not go there.

It's because of this guy:


Calvin. The French Horn.

He's a pretty good kisser, too. If you've got your technique down. But he can sure play hard to get when he's been neglected for a while. Don't you just hate that game? If that's really his case then it's about time for him to give because this relationship is down to crunch time! We have 4 concerts this weekend (3 of them Handel's Messiah), and I need something to show for our long hours of lip lock these past few weeks!

Speaking of Handel's Messiah, I think this is a good time to point out how far I've come in my appreciation for that work of music, since my first traumatic experience with it almost 5 years ago.

I remember it like it was yesterday. Brother Nielsen (my college horn teacher) handed me the music a few hours before the performance. Said they needed another horn and that the experience would be good for me. I trusted him like a little child, with eagerness and a willingness to please. Skimming thru the music, it looked easy enough. Mostly because I didn't read the top of the page where it stated the key. And notice how each movement was in a different key (that's only slightly exaggerated).

So I showed up at the dress rehearsal a bit nervous but mostly excited. The setup was amazing....I'd never seen so many microphones! And the choir. Huge! I felt pretty cool to be a part of it all. Until the music started. And I realized that what Ben-Jammin (my first horn dude) was playing sounded very different than what I was playing. Yet his sounds seemed to mesh with that of the orchestra and choir sounds better than mine did. That's about when I noticed the key. Maybe because of the corner-of-the-eye death glare Ben-Jammin shot me? Panic! My sight-reading skills are less than stellar. My transpose while sight-reading skills? They might turn any deceased music teacher into an irate, flesh-eating zombie. And maybe some live ones too. (a clue? that's bad).

I think I played all of 5 notes during that entire dry-run. Maybe 2 of them confidently? As soon as the conductor put down his baton on that rehearsal, I rushed home to do some damage control. And by damage control, I mean write all the fingerings in for as many notes as I could decipher during the 1 hour break. Which was maybe half of them.

Excellent.

It just got better, believe it or not, because when I showed up for the performance, they had relocated a microphone just below my bell. Oh bad. I just about cried. Until I realized there was an "off" switch on the microphone. That problem was easily solved. But there was still the whole "play notes" part. So, I put my best concert face on, quietly played the notes I knew, and tried to look pretty and focused on the ones I didn't know. And, also, ignored a few pained looks from the conductor.

"Easy buddy! There's a 150 piece choir and 80 piece orchestra. I'm not even on mic!"

I felt like the worst horn player ever. I was so glad when it was all over. And I swore NEVER AGAIN.

Fast forward 5 years thru a few performances of Messiah (with music in the proper key) later, and voila! We're friends now. I'm almost a fan. There is a powerful spirit to be felt with that music. And I'll admit it, some of the vocal solos are fun to attempt. With my bestest and grandest opera voice, of course.

Yes, the Gregman eats that UP. (read not). (he used to be a choir boy). (and it would make him writhe). (worth it).

So I can honestly say I'm excited to be part of the performances this weekend. And actually play this time, too.

If Calvin decides to be forgiving by then, that is.

Have a great day :-)

Kyoo 223 - Everything I needed to know about distance races..

...I learned from my "Long Run" playlist.


The race begins:

1. "Send Me On My Way"  -Rusted Root
2. "It's A Great Day To Be Alive"  -Travis Tritt

The race starts to set in:

1. "The Distance"  -Cake
2. "Face Drop"  -Sean Kingston

Just before half-way or right after half-way:

1. "Midnight Hour"  -Sdib
2. "Misery" -Maroon 5

A conscious decision:

1. "Keep Your Head Up"  -Andy Grammer
2. "Think Good Thoughts"  -Colbie Caillat

Gutting it out:

1. "I Won't Back Down"  -Tom Petty
2. "Machine"  -Josh Groban

The finish:

1. "I'm Still Standing"  -Elton John

And then for some people:

1. "Don't Happen Twice" -Kenny Chesney

While for others:

1. "Just Can't Get Enough" -The Black Eyed Peas

Ok, I thought it was funny.  Maybe you have to be a runner....?  If anything, you can at least find some fresh songs for your exercise playlist, maybe? Or you can just laugh at my lame music tastes....

I can take it.

PS - Water's more fun when served between the gaps of an entire citrus orchard.


Really.

Have a great day :-)

Yoo 222 - The Heinz ketchup bottle tradition

This is the Kyoo Grameez:



She's moved on to bigger and better things than this mortal life has to offer, but, she sure left me some good memories!  Her buttermilk hotcakes with homemade maple syrup?  Melt.  In.  Your.  Mouth.  Weeds?  The bane of our existence...pull them all up!  That last, little, tiny, miniscule remnant of the soap bar?  You mold it into the bottom of a new one.  Old-fashioned egg beaters?  Of course they can be bath toys!  Family history work?  Just do it.

She was a family history fiend.

Which I guess is how that little bottle of Heinz ketchup ended up on her windowsill.  According to the Kyoo grandpa, no one knows how long it's been around or where she got it, but she kept it because of the name.  Heinz.  She had a relative with that name.



And so it sat there.  For years.  And years.  As far back as I can remember, during summer time visits, I would stare at that bottle (and some little statue of a genie, I think?) whilst washing dishes by hand at the Grameez house.  And my hands would turn super pruney and feel weird.  And I would complain that my hands we're turning super pruney and feeling weird.  And the Grameez, and probably the Kyoo mom, too, would roll their eyes and tell me to just finish the job, maybe thinking I was trying to get out of doing dishes?  Which was only mostly true.  And I would turn back to the dishes with a "hmph" of despair because I still had to finish the job.  And, also, kind of a soft whimper, because I was really hoping my skin wasn't about to fall off.

The little Heinz bottle will tell you it's true.

So maybe you can understand my excitement when I acquired a miniature bottle of Heinz ketchup at a restaurant a couple weeks ago??

A flood of memories came back!

And I decided to continue the tradition.  So, in honor of the Grameez, there now sits a miniature Heinz ketchup bottle in the Kyoo kitchen.  Right above the sink.



Just think of the years it will see and the stories it will be able to tell!

It's going to have a happy life.  Just like the one in the Grameez house.

Also, the sweaters had to be pulled out today.  All 4 of them.  I'm thinking I should expand that collection this year...

And, maybe I turned my heater on?

Call me a pansy but my house was 52 degrees when I woke up this morning.  And that was just a rude awakening.

It did give me an excuse to spend some time in front of the fireplace, though.



I love that little fireplace.  Fake as it is.  And soon, it'll be all decked up for Christmas!

Excitement!

Have a great day :-)

Yoo 221 - "...you only do this for yourself"

"It's a good thing you only do this for yourself...cause no one else really seems to care."

Cue random photo:

Those were the words of encouragement that hung in the air from my Gregman as I stepped out onto the porch and faced my run. I don't think he meant it in quite the negative connotation one would first jump to upon hearing those words, but they gave me something to think about as I plodded along on those first couple miles.

This run was a bit daunting to begin. It was my last long run before the 50k, and therefore the longest. I'd slept in, ate breakfast, played around online, and just did a stellar job of procrastinaing the start all morning. It was ten o'clock. Unlike other things in life, there's just no way to rip the band-aid off fast when it comes to long distance running.  Maybe not procrastinating?  That might have helped...

I had planned on doing this run on the trails at Huntsville State Park, about an hour north of Houston. But then the Gregsleeper told me all about this dream he'd just had where I'd gotten shot in the ankle. And, also, I found out that the park was open for hunting this weekend. Which got muh brain thinking, "You know, I could easily be confused with a light, swift, graceful deer bounding thru the forest.   It'd be wise to avoid that..."

Right...

But really, I probably just didn't want to drive anywhere and add even more hours to the run. So I just stepped outside (with swells of praise and encouragement ringing in the background, remember?), hit "play", and took that first step.

Cue second random photo:

It was not the easiest run, or the most enjoyable, or anything positive, really, but we'll try to find the good, ok?

Here we go.  My "Things I realized I was thankful for on my long run" list:

• I'm thankful Houston received 3.02" of rain.  They needed it.  And maybe there was a reason it ALL had to fall while I was running?  I don't know...
• I'm thankful my phone did not succumb to an early, watery grave. I mean, time passes MUCH faster when you're worrying about your current livelihood just giving up the ghost at any second.
• I'm thankful for muh legs (and feet!). I looked at them this morning, realizing what I was about to put them thru, and felt kind of sorry for them. And extremely grateful for them at the same time. So I gave them a little pep talk. And they pulled through.
• I'm thankful I have friends and family that put up with me. I mean, I might be "doing this for myself", but it wouldn't be worth it without the people in my life who support me and who I know care.  The runs can be long and lonely but essentially I've got peeps to "come home to".
• I'm thankful for thinking time.  Because running gives me hours of quality "reflection" time, yes?
• I'm thankful for the lessons I learn from running that I don't think I'd learn quite as well from anything else. Like how to put my head down, keep pushing, and remember "the sun is still above all the rain that's coming down." (at least that's what Josh Groban told me...)  And everything EVENTUALLY ends...
• I'm thankful that life is not easy. I felt more joy and gratitude yesterday during AND upon completing that run than I would have doing just about anything else.  It was worth it.
• I'm thankful that the Gregrunner joined me for the last 4 miles. Ok, I might have, um, "coaxed" him out, but he did it. And it was cool of him.

See.  That was WAY more fun than complain-y Kyoo, right?  30.6 miles of thankfulness, right there!  Today's long run brought my total mileage in the past 24 hours up to 41.7 miles.  Still not sure how I did it, and yes, something is not right in my head, but it is what it is. And I might feel ready for this 50k?  After a good two weeks of taper, that is...

I thought I was going to celebrate by taking a nice shower (though, really, I'd kind of already been showering for the past 5 hours...) and spend the rest of the day relaxing with the Gregman and clan. But INSTEAD, I got to go to the Houston Ballet's performance of Nutcracker with the Gregman and clan. I'd never been so I did not hate that one bit.

Though shoving my poor, swollen feet into these wasn't favorite:

As if the Kyoo isn't bad enough at walking in heels! It's a problem quite compounded for the Kyoo, post 30-mile run. I had to cling to my Gregcane for dear life all night.

But he was looking quite handsome in his new clothes.

So I did not mind that one bit.

Or the fact that there was food involved.  And McDonald's icecream.  I had 4,000 calories to replace, after all.  And those salty chips were like a dream. 

The best part? I STAYED AWAKE for the whole show. That might have been the real triumph of the day, considering my track record with evening shows. But it was my first time seeing the Nutcracker live. And ballerinas have always mesmerized me.

It was pretty swell.

Have a great day :-)

Yoo 220 - Anyone else do the black friday thing?

I'll just cut right to the chase and admit it: "I did the Black Friday thing."

I was one of those crazies fighting their way through Wal-Mart before the turkey day had even drawn to a close.





The crazy part was probably that I was there for just one thing:





"Marley and Me" on blu-ray for $5.  Is this movie favorite?  Uh, yes, except for that one part that makes me bawl uncontrollably.  But I can fast-forward through that...

I was also a crazy lining up outside for the midnight opening of Target.

For no particular reason.  Other than everyone else was doing it.  And because they were handing out holiday Luna Bars, duh.

Estrogen sticks!

And since the Gregshopper (look at that fast and see grasshopper?  yeah me too) is a reader of this, lets not forget that there was icecream there, too.  He was, err, partying it up elsewhere.  And was kind of bitter that he was missing out on such excitement.  But more on that later.

Target is sure the place to be though.  The crowd is a bit more refined than the Wal-Mart throng, but still passionate enough to require the supervision of several managers AND local law enforcement.  But you're more likely to walk out of that one alive and without communicable dieseases.

Just saying.

 

So where was my Gregshopper through all of this?  Oh, only camped out in the DEPENDS aisle back at the Wal-Mart!





He had his eye on a new laptop (for scholarly things, of course) and chilled with the adultish of diapers (among other commodities...) for 3 hours.  The best part?  Maybe the fact that he had to get a bathroom pass if he needed to leave the line (shout out to high school!)?  There was a proud associate stepping on his little soap box every few minutes and laying down the LAW!

"When you entered the line, you were given a ticket.  You MUST have this ticket to obtain the merchandise at midnight.  No ticket, no laptop.  If you need to go to the restroom, you MUST get a pass.  You will have 15 minutes to return to the line or you will have to forfeit your ticket and return to the end of the line.  NO EXCEPTIONS."

It was a tough (and soooo interesting to watch) crowd.  But my Black Friday gladiator came through:

And is now the proud owner of his very first laptop.

This is probably a good time to give my Gregshopper some props because he is quite the Gregshopper.  Not only did he endure that kind of humiliation all night, but he woke up early-ish the next morning and spent another 8 hours on the mall crawl with me.

Besides the traffic (and maybe my horrible directions?) and more droves of deal-craved, sleep-deprived, caffeine-powered civilians, the day shopping experience was much sweeter.




A little more successful (for me, anyways).





A lot more magical (skating rink IN the mall AROUND the massive Christmas tree....!)!




Oh yes, and lets not forget that the Chick-Fil-A cow Santa made an appearance!





And all I could think to do was stand there in the cheesiest of ways with the thumb up (go Kyoo!).  Hopefully I'll get another chance at the Santa photo before the season's over...

Have a great day :-)

Yoo 219 - Race Recap: Houston Turkey Trot

"Reluctantly crouched at the starting line, engines pumping and thumping in time..."





"...she's going the distance!"

Of a 10k.  The Gregrunner and his familial counterparts and I celebrated the start of turkey day with an early-morning "trot" around the Galleria in Houston.

 

Anyone else think of something else when hearing the term "turkey trot"?

Yeah...

Don't worry though, this race is pre-pared for that too.  PLENTY of these:

It was kind of a mayhem-ish morning.  Hordes of people.  I don't do big races very often but they have this energy to them that makes running all the more exciting.  !

I mean, just look at this starting line!

Wait, just kidding.  This was my real perspective from the starting line:

I was wa-haaay in the back.  And then some.  But guess who was back there with me??

I'm kind of embarrassed to post this because it's, I think, the most creeper photo I've ever taken, but...

...??!!  Ok, I know no one else is going to know who this is or be excited about it, but, um, I'm 1000% sure that's Sandy Magnus.  As in astronaut Sandy Magnus.  Space shuttle and ISS astronaut.  Flew on the shuttle's final flight.  Kind of one of the Kyoo's idols.  Just that.

I started right behind her!  If the rush of a thousand people elbowing and vying for running space wasn't getting me psyched, that sure was.

And, that wasn't the most creeper photo.  Because this one actually takes the cake:

Annnnnd I hope she never stumbles on this site because that would be kind of awkward.  But she's a busy person, so the chances of that are small, right?

Unless she's one of those people that googles their name for funsies every other day or so...but who does that?

.......

Awkward silence.

*cough*

Anyways, I thought it was so cool but it was one of those "cool" moments that really only yourself can enjoy because NO ONE ELSE understands that it's a cool moment!  A less effective cool moment, if you will.

Oh well.  We finally reached the starting line and she darted off around people in one direction and I ended up being pushed in another.

Naturally I didn't talk to her or introduce myself or anything.  First, I do not rock those situations.  Second, how do you randomly walk up to an astronaut like they're some kind of celebrity without looking like the world's biggest geek?

You don't.

You just creepily blog about it instead!

But the race itself was excitement!  Walls of jogging folk for the first 2 miles and then intermittent walls of jogging folk for the next 3.5 miles.  And then more walls of jogging folk for the last .7 miles when the 10k course joined with the 5k course.  I can be an aggressive runner though so it was all part of the challenge and I ran a personal best of (around) 46:36.  I paid for a chip time but something got messed up and I have to go by the running clock on my phone.

I gave it my all and was pleased.

And cold.  The 5k race started later so I had to wait a good 20 minutes for the Gregrunner after finishing.  And muh body just could NOT regulate temperature post-run.  I shivered for the next 2 hours.





But otha than that, it was a successful race.

And the Gregrunner ran the WHOLE 5k.  He's got two of them on his running resume now.  Smiles!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Have a great day :-)

Yoo 218 - A road trip to Houston story

The Gregdriver and I were on our way to Houston. The trip started off well enough. There was a setting sun.




And picture-taking.




Because the lighting was favorite. And the boy loves picture-taking. (Hahaha. Not!)

"Just look at the camera for a second!"


"What do you want me to do?!"


"I don't know, stick your lips out or something!"




Subway was the road food of choice (turkey trot in the mañana!). And a bit of leftover pumpkin praline cheesecake from work.

Because the manager brought it to work today and said it was my job to make sure it was gone before the end of the day. I'm not sure how to take that?




Also, there was music. I was on a Clay Walker kick. "What's It To You" might have played 8 times. Maybe I was singing it, too? Because the Gregsimoncowell loves that.

"Really? You remind me of a 15-year-old right now."

Colbie Caillat snuck in there at times.

Because that puts the Gregdriver in a more thoughtful mood.




Until I start singing it to him...I think the romance of it all makes him uncomfortable.

The sun set behind us in a blaze of fiery light.




That lasted all of two minutes. And kind of put a halt to my picture-taking. So I played with the Gregdriver's new haircut. The back was all fuzzy. How could I ignore that??

All was well.

But then!




We stared at that for over an hour. While stopping. And then going. And then stopping again. I played on my phone. The Gregdriver got irritable. I rolled down the windows and sang and danced to "Party In The U.S.A". The Gregdriver got embarrassed. I talked to a forlorn Alisha on the phone. The Gregdriver got irritable again.

But not as irritable as I would have been. So we both agreed it'd be best if he kept driving.

It was a fun trip, let me tell you. So fun we spent an extra two hours on the road!

Really, I think the Gregaudience was just enjoying my singing.




Though it might be best if he got extra shut-eye tonight. Wish him good dreams. That don't involve traffic. And also, maybe no cheesy pop songs.

Thanksgiving tomorrow!

Have a great day :-)

Yoo 217 - My reindeer poops candy.

Cola-flavored. I'm certain.

In true reindeer fashion (I'm pretty sure, though I've never seen a reindeer poop for reals...just lotsa otha' deer...same applies?), a quick lift of the tail and...

...candy.

Also, I am now prepared for this most thankful of holiday weekends:

The Gregman has not quite mastered the prevention of Hangry Kyoo, so she's taking matters into her own hands.  And is packing a bounteously diverse supply of snacks for this upcoming weekend in Houston with his relateds.

I am a simple creature, almost like a baby.  Except you don't have to change my diapers (fingers crossed that doesn't happen for a LONG while...awkward).  Just keep me fed and rested, and I'll be the most amiable of creatures.

Except for maybe sea cucumbers?  Have they hurt anyone?

The point of this is, mostly, that I have learned from past weekend excursions to the Houston, that I can sink into the most irritable of moods because I don't have my normal access to food.  So the options before were irritable Kyoo or Kyoo eats all your food.  But my brilliance has struck again and I'm predicting a win-win-win situation.

I still need to impress these people, right?

So yes, this Thanksgiving weekend, for your mental viewing pleasure, I will be THAT girlfriend sneaking out to her car every hour or so for a snack.  In between partying with the boyfriend's family tree people.  Cool beans?

Cool beans.

I might pack some of those, too.

Have a great day :-)

Yoo 216 - OFFICIAL: It is that time of the year.

Yes, I know, the world has been turning to this blog with rapt attention just waiting for the announcement.

Well my rapturous little audience, whether you're a "not until AFTER Thanksgiving!" person or a "it's never too early to start celebrating!" person (and yes, I lean toward the latter), it's officially time to embrace and revel in the season.

"But Kyoo!" you say, "How do you know this?? Show us a sign!"

To which I say "You unbelievers! Trust not my attuned Christmas senses??"

Juuuuuust kidding! They put up holiday decorations at work over the weekend. Can it get more official? With the amounts of time I spend at work, uh, no, it can't.

Which is really great because now I get to walk past giant presents and Christmas trees AND learn about all the other holidays being celebrated around this time of the year.

I feel cultured?

In addition to all this excitement, I can also no longer safely ignore the "What do you want for Christmas?" emails from the Kyoo mom and other family folk whilst retaining illusions of grandeur and fulfilled-dreams on Christmas morning.

Mock me but this is the most stressful part of the season. My list has to be carefully calculated and masterfully planned. I need more time!

And, if you still need more signs that it's the season...try the water at work. I swear it had a marzipan aftertaste today...

If that's not a sign I don't know what is.

Have a great day :-)