reunited and it feels so good

This is an entry I never would have expected myself to write. I was born and raised in northern California and was always proud of my roots. I thought nor cal was hella tight! :) During my college years in southern California I always looked forward to trips home. Northern California was where my heart was, my home, I felt like I belonged here. And here I am, packing to go back down south for a wedding and could not be more giddy. I have been counting down the days for so long and can’t wait to be in that smoggy part of the state. So I thought I would compile a few reasons of why I miss my beloved so cal so much

1. You can reach just about any freeway in less than 3 minutes. Up here it’s weird to think of travel time including the 15 minutes it takes you to actually get on that on ramp. Where within a few turns of where you down south, you have so many ramps to choose from!!

2. Things are open past 9:00. It is weird to have to plan things out depending on when they close. Unless I want to drive 20 minutes downtown to find places that realize they need to be open past 9:00. This does not help my already grandma like tendencies of wanting to go sleep at 9, now there is really no reason not to because nothing is open.

3. You are 45 minutes away from anything!!! Back at school, I could be in Pasadena in 20, LA in 45, Disneyland in 30, the beach or the snow in like an hour. I had so many options of places to go!! Now unless I want to drive a few hours out to the bay area, I don’t have that many choices.

4. Mexican Food. Its my favorite and during school I fell in love with many little places and up here have not found a replacement.  One of the first things I want to do is go to Max’s, get a chicken tostada and the best margarita you will ever have!

5. The sunsets in southern California are beautiful. Ya the smog is gross and there is too much but it really preserves those colors in the sky and make it just jaw droppin gorgeous.  

6. The fun things to do, you can choose from hockey, baseball, basketball, soccer of different teams to go watch. You have like 3 amusements parks close. You can get in to watch almost any television show and can get back in prizes from the Price is Right or if you are one of the few lucky ones that gets on Ellen’s 12 Days of Giveaways.

7. And of course the amazing support system I have down there. I still have so many friends down there who I am so excited to visit with, I just hope I can make enough time to see them all!! 

"just a morning workout"

     My dad is one of the most disciplined people I know. Whether it is finishing each computer engineering type work project to the highest standards to ensuring everyone enjoys the Make-A-Wish fundraiser he co-chairs, to getting to the airport in less than half the time it should take, if Michael puts his mind to it, it is going to happen. The past 5-10 years he has taken his health very seriously. He nixed all carbs, all sugars, and started working out more, going to the gym, and got his own trainer.
    Last November he put it on himself to really start putting in the miles. Started with 10Ks, then a half marathon and switching it up between those. He decided he should put all this hard work to use and signed up for the California International Marathon. He trained so much, running about 6 miles before work during the week, then doing the long runs on the weekend, working up to 20 miles, over months and months. He went through many experiments of what to eat before/during/after runs, what hydration system works best for him, and what tech shirt and short/pant combo worked best. And before we knew it, it was Dec 3, the day before the marathon.
     We woke up early to go get him to the drop off point by 0630. I had it all planned out, mom and I were going to say hi to him at mile 4, 13 (half point), 20 (the wall), and then the finish. It was gonna be perfect. We knew his pace, the start time, and knew when we needed and how to get to those parts. Little did we know that dad's watch broke so he couldnt time himself and just went for it! Dad had been training at a 12 min pace but was running at a 10! Luckily we got to mile 4 early so we got there right when he was zooming by! We gave a quick shout then quickly jetted off to our next stop. Thank goodness since we saw him then so we got to keep up with the pace. We saw him at each stop after that. My favorite was at mile 20 where it is supposed to be the hardest and he had a smile on his face and simply said, "Hey I just got my regular morning workout left! Only 6 miles left!" Granted he did not as smiley when we saw him 6 miles later, and had slowed down a bit, but he made it within his goal. He finished the marathon in less than 5 hours and thirty minutes and ran the whole time.
     This is just another time where I get to be so proud of my dad. He is so determined and disciplined and never once doubted that he could do it. He put in the time, the effort, and it all paid off. I hope that i can be like my dad in this way. Probably not running, since we all know i have never been one for exercise :) but in regards to determination I want the kind he has. The discipline he has and then the confidence he has in himself to follow it up. Now dad is still trying to recover his sore muscles, but walking is getting easier, and he can look at his medal hanging off of our christmas tree. Here are some pics from the day!! 

this is dad at mile 13, the half way point. Running in his got wine shirt is a must :)

Dad's response to the wall, "hey, just my morning workout left!" take that wall!

coming in for the final stretch, the finish line is just around the corner!

And the day before the marathon we transformed the house into our christmas wonderland. We hung the lights, got our tree, and set up all the decorations. Here is a little look at our front lawn.

Inflatable Christmas decorations for our household are a must!

And lastly a little plug for all the work dad puts into for Make-A-Wish: http://sacnortheast.wish.org/