Tapering...and Being RANDOM

This is my taper week...well I'm officially tapering for 9 days before the half marathon.

Last Friday I ran 3.5 miles.
Saturday I ran 4 miles.

I haven't ran since Saturday.

Tomorrow night I'm running again. The most I would do would be 6 miles in an hour. I think I'll set the treadmill at a pace of 6.0 and just see what happens. I know I need to "be good" but doing a run somewhat like I described would help me mentally if I feel up to it.

Since crickets chirping is really all I have to report on my runs the past two days, I figured why not post 10 Random Things about me like Adam (sort of) tagged me to do a week ago. When I started this blog.. I didn't tell anyone at first...then I only told close friends and family.

I'm pretty excited to now have you Randos (aka. followers/bloggers I've never met) reading my blog :) You all offer running advice, the least I could do would be give you a little background into who I am!

10 Random Things About Me

1. If you haven't clicked on my Twitter link..I should start by saying my parents weren't Hippies/Pilgrims/Native Americans/or New Age activists who named me "Inspired." My name is Meredith. When I started doing long runs I got a Product Red iPod requesting that Apple engrave my name on the back as:
me(RED)ith gail

It's pretty convenient that I have red hair and red in my name. Hence the inspiration for the blog name.

2. Red is also, conveniently, my favorite color. For the majority of my childhood I liked blue. When I was a Freshman in college I decided I was sick of blue and red was a lot more exciting. Certain shades of red don't look all that great with my hair...but overall it's just a much "happier" color to me than blue.

3. I'm a huge fan of iTunes. The post I'm currently most proud of is this list of songs about running. I wrote it last week then burried it with posts about my training. So, if you'd like to at least "browse" 30 songs about running. Go here.

4. I've been jogging recreationally since I was 18. In college I ran all the time but usually 2-3 miles. Occasionally I'd push myself to do a 5 mile run and I completed a 10k. My senior year of college and first year out in the real world I met more and more people who had done long distance races of 10 miles or more. I decided I too wanted to get serious. THEN I found out how much fun endorphins are after runs of over an hour. It was like falling in love with running all over again. Or on a deeper level.

5. I'm currently nannying/apartment sitting/and working at a gym to be able to live in Northern Virginia. I came up here originally for an IT Consulting job... when Shit Hit the Fan with the economy... it also did in my...life? I was laid off and running is one of the only things that has gotten me through that. It still is actually. I guess "It Wasn't Personal. It Was Just Business." But let me tell you, when that person is YOU... it's pretty personal. I've since decided I'm interested in doing gym membership sales. So it probably was a blessing in disguise. Now I just have to realize that dream in 2010.

6. I gave up candy for lent this year. So far I've cheated 3 times. I had a Jolly Rancher when I had a sore throat. One tangerine Jelly Belly at my friend Rebecca's house (I really can eat just one). And today I ate a Lindt truffle. I was having a bad [enough] day to not even realize I cheated on Lent with a piece of Lindt. I feel like I was so unintentionally creative it doesn't even count. I'm going to add it to my exceptions list.

Exceptions:
Gum, One mint after a meal, Chocolate Chips, Chex Bars, Yogurt Covered Pretzels, Fruit Snacks, All Other Sweets and Baked Goods...
One freebie "Lindt" candy.
It's still challenging me because I like chocolate. And I'm not eating chocolate chips from the bag. Only if they are in things are they okay.

7. I've lived in Virginia my whole life. I grew up in Richmond, VA. Went to school in Harrisonburg, VA at James Madison University...one of the most friendly/fun places I've ever been. And now am living in Northern VA. I do NOT wish to settle in VA. But I am making the most of it for the time being.

8. Summer is my favorite season. HANDS DOWN. I like Spring because it means Summer is coming. Fall is permissable because of Football, my Birthday, Halloween, and Thanksgiving. Winter is a pretty depressing season for me. DC this past year had record snow fall. That WAS a little annoying but really it's the cold weather that bothers me. I do not think I had any more hatred for this winter than last winter. It's the season not the precipitation I dislike.

9. I'm a Cliff Bar Addict. (There could be worse things.)

10. I wear Asics (I'm still trying different styles). The gel seems to make this brand most comfortable for me. I will not buy them accented in only blue. Just because I think that's boring. The first pair I had were accented in purple. Then I had red+navy. Then orange+rose. Now pink.

And this isn't a "Thing"...but here's a picture of me...not in running gear. I'll have enough of those to post when I write my first race report! Oh and if you haven't already done this (and want to)...TAG! You have an excuse ;)