This week’s Tuesday Topic is:  What was your favorite book you read last year?  You can write about this topic or feel free to post any running related blog post.  Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida!  Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier!  Remember to come back for later linkers!

I love to read.  I find it so relaxing to sit down on the sofa or anywhere comfortable and read a book.  Add a glass of wine and it is much better.  :-). Reading takes me to a new place.  Reading transports me to the place where the story takes place.  It is a whole new world for me. 

Thanks to Wendy for posting the books she has read.  I go through it and then pick a few to place a hold at the library.  Others I have read based on other people’s recommendation as well.

I don’t have a favorite book that I read last year.  I read a few interesting books and it was hard to pick one.  I wished I could say that I read more books since I did have more time last year.  I didn’t.  I also watched a lot of TV last year.  Thanks Netflix!  Also, none of the books I read were running or fitness related but I do have one on my list to read this year.

Unorthodox – Wow!  I enjoyed everything about it and learned about Hasidic Jewish traditions.  I also enjoyed the Netflix series.  It was a perfect thing to do during the beginning of quarantine.

Truths I Never Told You – I could not put this book down.  I knew it was a very different way of living in the 50s and 60s but to read about (illegal) abortion made me feel sad and angry.

Ghosted – I was not too crazy about this book.  I only finished it because I wanted to see how it ended.  Rosie Walsh meets the perfect man.  Somehow he then starts to avoid her.  Ha, I thought he was just a jerk.  He wasn’t.  There is a family tragedy that took place years ago and it involves both families. 

Darling Rose Red – This was another I could not put down.  At one point I remember it was late and dark and I was still outside in the balcony reading.  It was twisted but yet interesting.  I had never heard of Munchausen syndrome by proxy and this book is an example of it.  Cannot imagine how this could be happening out there.

Books I am writing to get from the library are:

The Silent Patient

Win at All Costs

The Vanishing Half

The Promised Land (I have the audiobook and started listening to it but keep getting distracted).

Welcome to the first edition of Tuesday Topics for 2021.  Kim and I have lots of fun topics for this year.  We are excited for you to join us every week.  

This week’s Tuesday Topic is:  Your word for 2021.  You can write about this topic or feel free to post any running related blog post.  Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida!  Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier!  Remember to come back for later linkers!

There are so many words and it was hard to pick one.  I thought about everything that happened in 2020.  I thought about what I was looking forward to in 2021.  I then decided my word to be “Joy”.  Then I realized that I had picked the same word a few years ago.  But, I feel like this word will mean so much more this year.

Why this word?  I know many bad and great things happen in 2020.  I struggled a lot in my personal and professional life.  I tried to be positive but many times it was hard.  However, there were many times that that is what got me through.  I had to find joy in things around me.  It probably sounds corny but honestly I had no choice.  I mean, there were times when I cried and was angry, but then felt better afterwards.  I had to move forward.

Where will I find joy?  This is not in any specific order and not everything is on this list.  

My health.

My students.

My running.

Spending more time with my mom.

My friends.

My coworkers.

My cats.

My iMac.

My Brooks shoes.

My Oiselle long roga shorts.

My MAC patentpolish lip pencil in Ruby.

Cooking with my mom.

My new car.

My running playlist.

Making apple martinis.

My pens and highlighters.

Working with my coach.

My blogger friends.

My family.

This week’s Tuesday Topic is:  Your year in photos.  You can write about this topic or feel free to post any running related blog post.  Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida!  Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier!  Remember to come back for later linkers!

What a year this has been!  Thanks to everyone for linking up with us this year.  We’ve had many great conversations.  We learned a lot from each other and made it through this year.  It wasn’t easy but we did it.  

Let’s recap this year.

January:

⇒ I started off the new year with a cold.  I was on the sofa for 3 days feeling sorry for myself.

⇒ I fell and then was scared to run outside.  Had to do my workouts at the gym.

February:

⇒ Traveled to Atlanta to spectate the Olympic Marathon Trials.  Had lots of fun meeting up with other Oiselle friends and seeing the elite runners.

March:

⇒ Ran the Publix Atlanta Half Marathon.  It was my first and only race of 2020.  It was also a hilly and hard race.

⇒ After the race I went to The National Center for Civil and Human Rights.  Definitely a great museum to visit in Atlanta.

⇒ Due to the COVID I cancelled my trip to Mexico.  Later on United cancelled the flight.

⇒ Began working from home.  Saw that my cats slept pretty much all day. 

 April:

⇒ Took my first Peloton outdoor running class and said that it would be my last one.  Well, we know that wasn’t exactly true.  Matty is one of my favorite instructors.  I miss him!

⇒ Still doing virtual learning and mailed letters to my students.  I also got a chance to talk to one of them and it made me very happy.

⇒ Participated in a car parade for my students and parents.

⇒ Did my first Zoom meetup with my blogger friends.  Can we do this again?

⇒ My uncle died from Covid.  My mother had talked to him on Friday and he died the following day.  We couldn’t go to the wake/funeral but did see it via YouTube.  Here is Lola also watching it.  She definitely felt our pain.

May:

⇒ Teacher Appreciation Week!

⇒ Started working with a new coach.  Happy to be working with him and have been seeing lots of improvement.

June:

⇒ Done with school!  It was a rough and interesting 2 1/2 months of remote learning.

⇒ Started 4 weeks of Summer School.  Yep, still remote.

⇒ Ran along the lakefront.  The path has been closed and no one was allowed to run there.

 July:

⇒ I did not sign up for this race but the Chicago Marathon was cancelled.  I knew it would happen.

⇒ Signed up and completed the Pelothon 2020?  I was on team #LegendsofFun.  I liked that I was not only exposed to other instructors, but also encouraged to take different types of classes.  

⇒ The world almost ended for us runners because Garmin was down for a few days.

⇒ Ran the Quad-City Times Virtual Bix 7 with a few bloggers.

August:

⇒ Found out the 2020-2021 school year would start as remote learning.

⇒ My sister and mother tested positive for Covid.  My mother had a mild case but my sister lost her sense of smell and taste.  Mateo sensed that something was wrong.  

⇒ Without really thinking about it, I began a running streak.  Of course this was after my quarantine and given the OK to run outside.

⇒ First day of the 2020-2021 school year.   The power went out at 10am and I was done for the day.  It was a great first day!  🙂

September:

⇒ Celebrated my mother’s birthday!  She took another Covid test and was negative. 

⇒ With no race goals, my coach approached me with the idea to train for 5k.  Sure!  Goal was 33:30.

October:

⇒ Went to set up my classroom.  That day I found out a parent had complained about me to the Principal.  I was so angry and I cried.  Felt like quitting too.

⇒ Bought a new car.  I loved my previous one and thought I would keep it forever.

⇒ I voted!

November:

⇒ Had virtual parent/teacher conferences.  Out of 26 students, I talked to 13 parents.  Disappointing?  Yep.

⇒ Another stay-at-home order.

⇒ Got a new Garmin watch.  I love it.

⇒ Celebrated my birthday along with a few other bloggers.  Great birthday month!

December:

⇒ Celebrated 100 days of my running streak.

⇒ Ran my virtual 5k and met my goal.  Finished it in 32:22.

⇒ Got a new student in my classroom.  Now I have 28.  Angry and frustrated that the District would allow this to happen.

⇒ Began training for a 10k.  My goal is 1:05-1:06.

⇒ Winter Break!

⇒ Soon will say goodbye to 2020.

This week’s Tuesday Topic is:  What are you goals for 2021?  You can write about this topic or feel free to post any running related blog post.  Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida!  Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier!  Remember to come back for later linkers!

Well, this is an interesting post.  Last year I wrote my goals for 2020 and well we know how this year went.  I added a few of them again in today’s post and crossing my fingers I accomplish my goals.

✅ Stay injury free.  The last injury I had was plantar fasciitis.  It was painful and one of the worst injuries I’ve ever had.

✅ Buy a house.  Yep, still on my list.  

✅ Travel to Mexico.  I bought tickets for me and my mother to go during Spring Break.  Hopefully we can make it next year.  

✅ Be more patience at work and at home.  With everything that happened this year, I think I did OK here.  It wasn’t easy but many things weren’t easy this year.  

✅ Just in case there are more live races, my goal is to PR in the following distances: 5k, 4 miles, 8k, 10k, 10 miles, and 13.1.  OK, so maybe not all but at least 1 of them?

This week’s Tuesday Topic is:  Share your best running views.   You can write about this topic or feel free to post any running related blog post.  Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida!  Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier!  Remember to come back for later linkers!

Happy Tuesday!  I am counting down the days till Winter Break.  This morning I am in a training session for a new math program we plan to pilot for our students.  The one we currently use isn’t really the best so I am excited to hopefully use a better math curriculum.

I love running in Chicago.  Of course my favorite place to run is the lakefront.  The views are amazing!  I haven’t run there in months and truly miss it.  I cannot make it there to run and then be ready to start work at 8:30am.  

For the past couple of months I have been running by my house.  It is so easy to just head out the door and run 5 or 6 miles and be back in time for work.  I like it that it isn’t dark when I head out.  However, that will change once I go back to school.  I will need to be out there again at 6am.  Oh well.

This is one of my routes.  Not my best drawing but it works.  

Sometimes I go a little further north because it is in the area that I am interested in buying a house.  I get excited when I see a sign in the front yard, but it turns out it s a sign congratulating a graduate.  I keep on looking for a house for sale.  I almost bought one last year but someone beat me to it.  Then earlier this year there was one that I wanted to check out but someone else beat me to it too. 

Anyway, here are a few pictures of my running views.  They may not be as exciting as a lakefront view, but to me it is more than that.

This fire station is 2 blocks north from from my house.  Whenever I see it I think about that day last year in March when my mother had a stroke.  Thanks to the paramedics she was quickly rushed to the hospital where “luckily” it was a mild stroke.

This is heading out south.  It is the train station (Orange Line) which takes you to Midway Airport and downtown.  How I loved taking this train when I worked downtown.  This train has taken me to the airport many times (I miss traveling) and to Grant Park for a race.

Running north on Pulaski is my favorite store.  You see it, right?  It is also close to the area I want to live in.  

Pete’s Market is next to Target.  Now you see why I want to live in this area?  Target and Pete’s Market are the two places I shop to get pretty much everything I need.

I’ve run these streets and sidewalks a lot.  I’ve laughed, smiled, and cried while out there.  I’ve mentioned that running is my ME time.  It is the time for me to think or not think and simply enjoy my music.  It gets me ready for the day.  More than even I am thankful for running.