Vacation!

We are getting ready to head off for a real vacation!  By that, I mean, no race involved.  The motivation to actually quit talking about going to Hawaii someday and actually make reservations was prompted by a wedding.  Eric's brother and his wonderful fiance are getting married on the beach, and by happy coincidence, our 33rd anniversary is just two days before.  That was all the motivation we needed.  We haven't been before and are really looking forward to it.  Snorkeling, paddle boarding, hiking, swimming, reading, running, lounging, eating, and drinking are all on the agenda.  I have to come home one day earlier than Eric in order to be here for my first class of the quarter and I will miss the actual wedding ceremony.  However, the bride and groom reversed the usual order of things, so I'll be there for the celebration dinner and party the night before.  I can't wait!  But before we go, we have another wedding to attend tomorrow night - it's our week for all celebrating love!

Let's see, what have I been up to since I last posted...oh, that's right, reading, writing, reading, writing...repeat...I am deep in the proposal writing stage, going back and forth with my advisor, fine-tuning the design, the lit review, the research questions, pretty much all of it.  It probably seems strange that we are spending so much time on the proposal, but it has to be ready to pass both proposal defense and the Institutional Review Board.  Plus, it ends up being the first three chapters of the dissertation.  There are days that I am afraid my head will explode - I find myself feeling foggy and light-headed from thinking so hard.  That's another weird thing  - I have these moments where I go sit in the living room (usually in a spot of sunshine) and just...think.  I don't know that I've ever just spent time sitting and thinking.  Usually I run and think, or do dishes and think, or fold laundry and think, or ... well, you get the idea.  I still do those things, but there are these moments now where doing anything except thinking is too distracting - and that is a strange feeling.  I guess it is a good thing, right?


In the realm of running, I've been sort of halfway training for the Victoria Marathon - coming up in three short weeks.  My weekly mileage is hanging around 30 miles, typically with an eight miler on Wednesday and distances from 5-12 miles on the weekend.  Actually, I think I've done 12 miles once and 10 miles around four times, and everything else has been between five and eight.  My running buddy Lizzie and I did 15 this past Wednesday - and that's going to be my long run for this round of training.  Luckily, Victoria will count as my long run for Ghost of Seattle.  Not exactly the best training, but it is what it is! 

I also wrapped up the summer class I was teaching and set up my fall class in the last month.  We went sailing again with Web, my parents, one of my sisters, and Riley and Emily.  That was really fun.  I watched Web's ship pass through the Sound from the edge of a Mukilteo beach, and when he spotted me with the binoculars, the captain changed course.  They sailed straight at me, then swung broadside and fired the cannon at me, before heading back on course - it was the highlight of my week!  We also got to go celebrate a housewarming with Riley and Emily in their first house.  It has been a great summer and I'm looking forward to finishing it out in Hawaii.  Aloha!