Fearless Fourteen

If any of you have been sucked into the crazy world of Stephanie Plum like I have, you will definitely enjoy Janet Evanovich's new book Fearless Fourteen.

These books are an easy, entertaining read - great for the beach. This would not be my favorite of the 14 books. I don't think I had any LOL moments, although there were some chuckles. Not much on the love triangle going either. But, it is entertaining, and if you love the crazy characters from the past, you will definitely enjoy this one too.

Smokin'

Friends invited us to their home for a picnic over the 4th holiday. Jeff is the king of ribs to begin with, but he totally outdid himself with 2 different kinds of smoked ribs. Oh man, they were just falling off the bone and were so yummy! Here's Jeff and his handy dandy smoker.

Following dinner, we had our first experience with the Wii. We bowled, we played tennis, and finally, we played Guitar Hero. It was a blast, but I'm glad I don't have a Wii. I would absolutely never get anything done. I would be glued to that thing until I mastered it. Renee was the undisputed winner of Guitar Hero - clearly she spends a lot of her free time with her guitar. She was definitely smokin'!

The Full Cup

I didn't post about this sooner because I wasn't quite sure if it was a good thing to do or not. I may regret it, but I'm going to talk about it anyway because that's just the kind of mood I'm in.

While researching things to do in Old Alexandria, I noticed a place called The Full Cup. It calls itself "a European bra-fitting salon, dedicated to the idea that buying bras should be a heart-warming, fun, and loving adventure, that makes us all feel better about our bodies."

Hmmm. Interesting I thought. We stopped in and were able to make an appointment for later in the afternoon. We hesitated, but the clerk assured us...more Brent really... that she was sure it would be worth his while. Hmmm again.

It was very interesting really. Who knew there was so much to consider when getting a good fit? Some were serviceable everyday wear, and then others were, well...worth Brent's while! LOL!

Osteoarthritis of the Knees

It started a little over a year ago when I had the brilliant idea to take a year and train for a half marathon. Six months into training, with tears running down my face because of the knee pain, my chiropractor told me to stop running immediately. Fast forward one year later, and I'm still having serious knee pain especially on yoga and training nights or days when I am walking a lot. My trainer, Amas, said it was time to go to an orthopedist and figure out exactly what the problem is. I have a love/hate relationship with Amas. At the moment, I'm hating him for forcing me to face some hard facts.

It was much easier to remain ignorant and whine about it. Now, however, I have to face the fact that I have osteoarthritis of the knees and need to do whatever I can to avoid total knee replacement. Of course, it's just a matter of time until that will be the only solution available. In the meantime, continue strengthening the knees (which I've been doing with yoga and training), taking glucosamine/chondroitin which hasn't worked in the past, and try to stave off antiinflamatories and injections as long as possible.

It's hell getting old.

At Home in Mitford

I read quite a bit and I do enjoy a good book series. I've been hooked on any number of of them, but I have to say, seldom have I enjoyed one more than Jan Karon's Mitford series. The books are an easy read, but are filled with colorful characters and are truly inspirational and uplifting. The books center around the life of Father Timothy Kavanaugh, a small town Episcopalian priest. You will laugh, you will cry, and I guarantee you will thoroughly enjoy them. Give this first book a try - you won't be disappointed. In fact, I think you'll want to read the entire series!

The Dratted Flat

Brent's first tri of the season was held at General Smallwood State Park at Indianhead MD. this was an Olympic distance race 1.5k swim, 40k bike, and 10k run. The swim went well - as usual - it's one of Brent's better sports. The bike was smoking until he hit that little piece of glass! That accounted for the first flat. The second flat, 5 minutes later, can be chalked up to him missing the piece of glass still embedded in the tire. Oops! A good thing he carries 2 spares and 2 co2 cartridges, eh?! This debacle left him a bit deflated for his least accomplished sport - the running. oh well, 2 out of 3 ain't bad! Brent insists I mention how hot it was - I suppose 85 degree weather made his run more challenging than normal.

As usual, I rounded up a bunch of strangers to cheer him across the finish line. He always tells me he can't hear me yelling for him, so I typically ask people near me to cheer him on. One down, two more to go.

Old Alexandria

This was a tri weekend. I committed to attending 3 triathlons this year, and this was the first. In order to make it more palatable, Brent does his best to make it as enjoyable a weekend as possible for me. We revised our original plan and decided to spend Saturday in Old Alexandria, the tri on Sunday morning, and then Mt. Vernon on Sunday afternoon.

Old Alexandria is a great place to visit if you want to just wander through interesting shops and dine in ethnic restaurants. We did a little bit of both on this scorchingly humid day. But, as usual, Brent and I had a great time despite the hot weather.

These are pictures of Christ Church. This is the Episcopal church attended by both George Washington and Robert E. Lee.

The Carlysle House became of import when British General Braddock made the mansion his headquarters in 1755. Braddock summoned five colonial governors to meet there to plan the early campaigns of the French and Indian War. Gadsby's Tavern was an important to Alexandria's political, economic, and social life and included visitors such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams.

We enjoyed the Torpedo Factory which produced torpedos during WWII. It has been turned into an art center along the waterfront.

This picture was taken for Kera.

Our plans to visit Mt. Vernon went by the wayside when one of the windows in the van broke as we were leaving the tri on Sunday. The window was down, and a mechanicsm broke so that we couldn't raise the window. Mt. Vernon will have to happen another day!