Seattle

I just got back from a wonderful trip to Seattle.

What a beautiful city! It is so green, both literally (lush roof gardens are everywhere) and figuratively (every place we went had trash, recycling and composting. every. single. place.) And as a wonderful bonus the weather was perfect: sunny with light breezes from the ocean.

Mike and I traveled to the beautiful city in the north to attend PAX.

(Alert: Things are about to get really nerdy. If you consider yourself the slightest bit cool, or if you think of 'nerd' in a negative light, you probably shouldn't read on.)

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Any cool people left?

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No?

Good.

For those of you who don't know, PAX is a gaming convention. Video and table-top games with a hint of artistic web-comic sub-culture thrown in for good mesure. Basically it is a collection of nerds with space to play all kinds of games, see new games shown off, and listen to panels of experts talk about games. It. Is. Awesome.

Here is a quick pan of the room for PC gaming. To give you a hint to the size of this thing.

I had such a great time playing games, catching up on "A Song of Fire and Ice" reading while in line and seeing some very funny people up on stage. (My abs are soar from laughing so much) But my greatest joy of the weekend was basking in the success of the people who run PAX. Though it may sound silly (even to them), I genuinely admire these men who pursued their passions. The creators of PAX drew web-comics, not because they thought it would make them a ton of money, (seriously, who could see that coming?) but because it was something they wanted and needed to do. They worked hard and consistently before they were able to make it a full time job. Even the keynote speaker this year, David Jaffe (who works as video game designer), outlined in his speech his own struggle to follow his internal 'voice', his passion. What can I say, I have a weakness for stories where good people work hard and with passion and are rewarded. And for me, PAX is a big celebration of hard work and passion becoming something more than it set out to be.

Here is the huge main theater fit for rock stars, used by nerds:

Lets pause for a moment and talk about one of my favorite parts of vacationing: the food. We had amazing luck finding great food at small hole-in-the-wall places. Particular stand outs wereLil' Woody's Burgers and Shakes, a hot dog stand in Westlake Park and The Baguette Box.

Here was my amazing brased pork shoulder sandwich from The Baguette Box:

I was so impressed at what great tasting quality food we got for reasonable prices. It inspired me to be a bit more adventurous at home to see if I could find any place as cheap and delicious in LA. (Recommendations welcome.)

So, to summarize, my weekend consisted of touring a beautiful city, playing board games, eating great food and being encouraged to keep doing what I love. I am truly grateful.

~Claire Out.

10K Complete!

I have completed 10K of my marathon goal for the month. Hurrah!

To celebrate, I thought I would share with you a glimpse inside of my head on a typical swimming day.

Lap 1 - COLD! This pool is cold. Why do they keep it so cold?

Lap 2 - Okay, here we go.

Lap 3 -

Lap 4 - This is good for you.

Lap 5 - This is good for you. Seriously. You will look and feel better.

Lap 6 - Seriously? Only lap six? This is going to be a long morning.

Lap 7 -

Lap 8 -

Lap 9 - I think I'll have some oatmeal for breakfast.

Lap 10 - Ten laps! I'm a quarter of the way done. That's great! Only a quarter? I'm a quarter of the way done. That's terrible.

Lap 11 -

Lap 12 - Is this lap eleven or twelve? Probably eleven. Right?

Lap 13 - No that lap was totally twelve.

Lap 14 - Fourteen fortieths, seven twentieths. Seven twentieths? What does that look like?

Lap 15 - Fifteen fortieths, three eighths.

Lap 16 - Sixteen fortieths, four tenths, two fifths.

Lap 17 - I'm thirsty. It's terrible to be thirsty when you are in the water. Yuck.

Lap 18 -

Lap 19 -

Lap 20 - Halfway done.

Lap 21 - Am I getting slower? I feel like I'm getting slower.

Lap 22 -

Lap 23 - Is twenty three a prime number?

Lap 24 - My goggles are steaming. Is it worth it to stop and clean them? No. Probably not.

Lap 25 - *insert song lyrics on repete here*

Lap 26 - Almost three quarters of the way done! (Not really)

Lap 27 -

Lap 28 - Is this lap twenty-eight or twenty-nine? Probably twenty-nine.

Lap 29 - (missing)

Lap 30 - Three quarters of the way done!

Lap 31 - How can my right arm be soar and not my left. Lefty, what are you even doing?

Lap 32 - *song lyrics again*

Lap 33 - I just swam a mile!

Lap 34 -

Lap 35 - Going to focus on just kicking this lap.

Lap 36 - That. Was. Exhausting. Never kick again.

Lap 37 -

Lap 38 - Three.

Lap 39 - Two.

Lap 40 - I am done! Thank goodness! I'm a swimming hero!

Hope you enjoyed this little glimpse inside of my head.

~Claire Out.

5K Complete!

Today I finished day 3 of my month long swimming marathon. So far I've already completed a 5K! I thought I would take a moment to share some observations from my journey so far.

1. You know how chemical reactions have a certain activation energy? Well if working out in the mornings is my desired chemical reaction, the activation energy required is me choosing to wake up instead of hitting the snooze button.

Everything from the moment I chose to wake up onward takes care of itself. It is just those first thirty seconds of wanting to flop back down asleep that must be conquered. And it's tough.

2. You know those really healthy people that you are envious/admiring of at the gym? (Internal monologue: 'Why don't I look like her?"). Well it turns out they are at the gym EVERY day.

I didn't notice that until I was there too. If healthy people are at the gym every day. And I'm at the gym every day. That means I'm on well on my way to being a healthy person. Right?

3. Apparently Wednesday morning is the time to go swimming. It was so busy in fact, that I couldn't get in to swim. (There are are only three lanes at my gym.)

So I had an unexpected rest day. I'll have to do double duty over the weekend. And wake up a TAD earlier next Wednesday.

I feel like I've learned so much in less than a week. I'm learning what we in the Conger family call "lore". What gym tips have you guys picked up over the years? What is the trickest hurdle standing between you and your work outs?