Juliana Moves

Happy Friday! I hope you had a good week. This feels like the perfect weekend to do a Halloween craft or bake a fall-themed snack or dessert. I don’t think I’ve shared this here, but I hired a coach to get me through the Richmond Marathon and then to train me for MMT again next year! I share that because for the marathon he has me upping my weekly mileage but keeping my long runs relatively short – I think to save my legs for when MMT training starts up. One huge perk is that my weekend runs don’t ever take too long, so I have a lot more time in the day than I’m used to! Might have to get up to something cozy this weekend to celebrate October.

Anyway, here’s what I’m…

…Reading: I just finished To the Gorge by Emily Halnon. It was heartbreaking and beautiful and inspiring all at once. I cried but still could not put it down. I would highly recommend it to runners and people dealing with grief and loss and anyone who wants to be reminded to live with more joy. 

…Eating: Lots of leftovers. Patrick was out of town earlier in the week and we had a lot of leftovers sitting in the fridge! Honestly it made my life super easy. As much as I love grocery shopping, sometimes I don’t want to think about dinner or what I’m going to pack in my lunch – so I’ve appreciated the easy week of food.

…Wearing: My garden clogs (look carefully in above photo)! Since we’ve had so much rain this week and the temperatures are all around lower, I’ve taken to wearing my big chunky green clogs more lately. Patrick got them for me to the garden (LOL at that attempt at having a garden), but they’re also wonderful for slipping on to waltz around in wet grass in. Do they look dorky? Almost certainly. But I don’t care! A cool girl at the climbing gym once complimented them so they must be trendy.

…Listening to: ‘Tis Autumn by Nat King Cole Trio and WTF by Missy Elliott and Pharrell Williams. Wildly different songs for wildly different scenarios, but both are super fun! Maybe listen to the Nat King Cole song while you’re getting ready and drinking coffee on a cool, autumn morning and listen to WTF when you want to dance around during a run.

…Trying: To be better about eating the frog. I mentioned this in my last post, but I am generally trying to tackle my biggest, most important items of the day (both at work and in life) early and ambitiously, rather than letting procrastination take hold. So far, so good! I still like to build in breaks and wiggle room, but *surprise surprise* when you actually just start on something big it actually feels more approachable!

…Thinking About: Deep cleaning the house. I meant to do some basic chores around the house when Patrick was gone, but I never got around to it. I was too busy between working and running and reading my book! 

…Excited For: A less rainy weekend ahead! I really want to finally go trail running again this week, so hopefully things dry out decently well. We may go to the Virginia State Fair too, though we haven’t solidified those plans yet. Our #1 driver to attend the fair is the fun food they have this year. I love loaded tots or fries.

Have a fantastic weekend! Don’t take yourself too seriously. Life is beautiful and short.

Love,

JN