Running Glory

Music: The Script- Live Like You Were Dying
Mood: Bored



Most of y'all would know this song from the radio. Kris Allen, last year's American Idol winner, released this song, Live Like We're Dying, as a single not knowing The Script wrote and preformed this song already. It's found on the B side of The Script album, and the two artists basically sound the same doing it, but I feel The Script's version is better stylistically.

I must comment that the lyrics of this song are beautiful, and I am trying to live this semester to the fullest.

We only got 86 400 seconds in a day to 

turn it all around or throw it all away

we gotta tell 'em that we love 'em

while we got the chance to say

gotta live like we're dying

While this semester stinks in terms of the course load and the work in the classes, I am thankful that I am a second semester senior with a JOB, and I don't really give a rat's butt about the classes any more. One class in particular really annoys me. This professor is know to be a good, engaging professor, but now that I don't care anymore, all his comments and anecdotes seem so trivial and almost annoying. Rather than saying something simply, he has to act like he's so witty and give an extended version of what could have been a quick answer. I've also checked out of school because I'm totally not doing any of the reading that I would have been doing freshman or sophomore year, and I hope I can get away with it.

Beyond school, I've been exploring Austin more and starting to cross things off on my bucket list. Happy hours all over Austin, going to drink specials during the week days, trivia night at the various pubs, hanging out with friends. It's been relaxing, but I want to do more of the fun things. I haven't gone to a concert in a while and I'm wanting to go to Howie Day (with Serena Ryder)-- both of whom I've seen, Matt Hires (with Jason Castro)-- I've already seen Matt Hires before, and I really want to see Citizen Cope (Mar 12) and Taylor Swift. Citizen Cope tickets are $30 and Taylor tix are sold out but I could buy them online for $120 a pop, and I don't know anyone else who would want to go to either concert.

Other than school and hang out and avoiding school, I've been training for the Austin Marathon on February 14th! In fact, I ran the 3M Half-Marathon on January 24th. I had only ran like 12 miles before then, so 13.1 was exciting and exhilarating. My goal was to run it under 2 hours and I ended up finishing with a chip time of 2 hours and 2 seconds. I tried sprinting at the end and wish I had gone 2 seconds faster, but I'm still very happy with my time. It averages into 9 minutes and 9.6 seconds per mile! That's really good, considering I ran the Run for the Water 10miler in 9 minutes per mile! My goal for the marathon is about 4.5 hours! Hopefully I can do it. The Half-Marathon was great! I ran well the entire time, having to stop and massage my numb foot around mile 4, 5, 6 until I stopped happening. I also took Clif Shot Bloks that gave me energy and stamina throughout the race. I'm hoping I'd be able to do double that. In fact, at 13.1 miles, when I reached the finish, I really could have gone for more!

Vicki also ran the half-marathon, and she did really well as well! She's running the Austin Half Marathon and so are many of my other friends. I hope when they finish their half, they'll go and cheer for me for the full. That would mean a lot and help inspire me as I'm struggling through mile 20ish. For training, I'm hoping to run at least 20-22 miles before the full marathon.

In my goals that I set in the last post, I'm hoping for 6-packs by spring break but I'm making slow progress. I mean, I'm running and eating healthy, but I don't know if I'm visiting the gym as well as I should. Also, I've definitely said yes more, as well! Well, I'm done eating my ice cream bar, so I guess I'll head out now. Enjoy the photos below of the 3M Half-Marathon!

Me Finishing the 13.1 miles!

Official Finisher!

Awesome Finisher Medal

Vicki and Me after the Race!

First Day

Music: Hey, Soul Sister- Train
Mood: Exhausted



The last semester of my undergraduate college career started today, and I'm anxiously anticipating my last class, last test, last group project, and last word to my thesis already. With class on Tuesday from 12:30 to 2 and then again from 5 to 8pm on top of waking up early to go for a run, I'm spent and about to go to bed.

I'm running the 3M Half-Marathon on Sunday (that's 13.1 miles) and I'm so unprepared for it. During break, I didn't really train because of my travels to California as well as getting my wisdom teeth extracted. In retrospect, I should have trained more, despite the cold and the distractions, but what can I do? I went running today for about 6miles and it was a struggle. I had to stop to catch my breath multiple times, which I never have had to stop in the past. Before, my foot started to go numb before I was ever out of breath. I'm extremely worried but what can I do? It's in less than a week and I've screwed up my training. I'm more scared about the full-marathon on Feb 14th!

This semester as a whole is not looking that good, given that it's my last semester of my senior year. With classes that require homework, groupwork, etc., this is one the hardest semesters ever, yet I'm determined to enjoy it. While I'm not one to make new years resolutions, I tend to set goals when life marks a change of pace or a start of something new. Here's what I've contemplated with the start of this new semester:

• Abs- As shallow as it sounds, I'd like to have defined abs by my spring break trip. While I know I'm not fat or out of shape, I would like to have defined abs. This revelation came when I was at the Galleria Houston this past Sunday. Well, Abercrombie models are know for their ridiculously good looks and rock hard bodies. Well, outside of Gilly Hicks, the women's lounge line of Abercrombie, there was a model standing in the store front with his shirt off and just wearing jeans, showing off his defined 6-pack. I thought to myself, that would be nice to have! So there we go, I love doing ab/core work, the problem is that I have a smaller layer of fat slightly covering up my abs if I don't flex. I'd like to get rid of that. The joke around my house is 6-pack in 6-weeks for spring break.
• Eat better- This is probably along the same likes of the abs. I don't eat that terribly but I do go on eating binges sometime of ice cream or dry cereal. I'm trying to eat smaller meals, snack more, and snack healthier.
• Say YES more- instead of saying no to opportunities to have fun, I'm going to say YES and consent to more things. I've made a senior year bucket list that I'm hoping to accomplish before graduation. Along the same lines, I would like to say YES more. This is sort of along the same premise of YES MAN, which was a terrible movie. lol. 
• Be early- If you know me, I'm usually either late or just on time to things. Instead of keep people waiting on me, it's my goal to be early to things. This means leaving the house earlier or not starting something at the last minute right before I need to be somewhere.
• Dress better- While I have nice clothes and plenty of shoes, I've started dressing pretty sloppily. I've moved more  into wearing athletic clothes, which is pretty bad. Now granted I do ride my bike to school, but I still think I could try a little bit more than I am right now.

All right, I'm exhausted so I'm going to bed. Good night!

Twenty-Ten

Music: The Man Who Can't Be Moved- The Script
Mood: Content and Satisfied

Happy New Year and welcome Two Thousand and Ten.

Of course Ellen would have the best New Years Glasses of everyone!

I apologize for being missing in action for the last few weeks. I got busy with studying for finals, preparing for winter break, and enjoying the 2nd to last semester of my college career. I do have some good and bad news to announce. Some of you might know that I started this blog because I became a BBA Blogger for the Reality Bytes section of McCombs Career Services. Due to several reasons, Reality Bytes is put on a hold for the spring semester. Thus, as I graduate this May, Fall 2009 was my last semester blogging as a BBA Blogger. The good news is that I will still be updating this blog occasionally. Thus, everything I say represents my own ideas and thoughts, won't be censored or edited, and will thus, probably be more raw.

As a quick recap of what's happened in my life since I last updated, I did extremely well on my finals and in my classes, given that I didn't really study that hard for any of them. Due to the silly plus-minus grading system that should have been grandfathered in, I got one A-minus in Statistics in a semester that should have been a 4.0. Making things worse, statistics was probably one of the simplest classes I've taken during my college career. It's interesting that I got an A in business law and cost accounting but an A- in Statistics. Oh well. My GPA has wiggle room, but I wanted to save some wiggle room for this semester, where I truly won't want to do any work. The only thing I feel like doing this semester is working on my Thesis, everything else (intermediate accounting, finance for lg corporations, capstone management, and capstone finance) I could care less about. Lol.

Beyond school, I got a lucky and was picked in the draw for a BCS National Championship Ticket for $220. Having gone to almost every UT home game this season (except for 1 because of a retreat) and even having attended the BIG 12 Championship game in Dallas where we had a close-call against Nebraska. I really wanted to go to the game in Pasadena but getting hotel and airfare there wasn't reasonable. I ended up selling the ticket and using some of the money to pay for spring break. My roommates and I booked a 7-day cruise leaving out of New Orleans stopping in Cozumel, Belize City, Guatemala, and Costa de Maya!

For the first part of break, I stuck around in Austin to celebrate my good friend's 21st birthday. It was really fun because I was the DD so I stayed pretty coherent for the whole night and got to watch people make fools off themselves! Lol. Happy 21st Little Creamer! After returning home, I enjoyed myself and caught up with friends in Sugar Land! Sugar Land has changed a lot. There are places to drink, hang out with friends, and enjoy yourself! On the 24th, I flew to San Francisco to visit cousins and family! I spent from the 24th to the 31st in Sacramento, playing board games, watching movies, and catching with my cousins. Then on the 31st, my family and I went back to San Francisco where I rang in the New Year watching Ryan Secrest and the ball drop. I really want to go see the ball drop one year. We also explored the Fisherman's wharf as we do every year and also walked around Golden Gate Park. Now, finally because I'm old enough, we went to Nappa Valley to go wine tasting! We went to 4 vinyards, and I tasted (and swallowed) at every single one! I discovered how to taste wine correctly, and I found a liking for Petite Sirah's, reaffirmed my love for Cabernet Sauvigon, and I also discovered a liking for Ports and Moscat's! I really enjoyed the wine tasting, despite how expensive the bottles are. The problem is, I know what tastes good, but I don't know what a good price is. I definitely want to go wine tasting in the Texas Hill Country, where I hear it's cheaper and pretty good.

After getting back to Houston on the 4th, I went to the dentist to get x-rays for my wisdom teeth. I'm having my extraction on the 11th, but between now and then, I'm in Austin watching the game with my roommates and friends. I'm hoping to see the tower light up orange tonight, so Hook 'em Horns!