Moving on Up!

It's getting better all the time over here in Jennyland. Packing up (well, technically writing about packing up at the moment) the rest of my life in Tucson. Things are actually happening. The wheels they are a'turnin'.

I thought I'd write a quick little blurb about my latest goals. Ahem.

I have decided to become a serious runner. Laugh now. Be impressed later.

Here's a schedule of my running goals:

5k (3.1 miles): September 11, 2011 in Studio City for Ovarian Cancer
10k (6.2 miles): December 10, 2011 in Santa Monica for the annual Christmas run
Half Marathon (13.1 miles): April 8, 2012 in my favorite city, San Francisco!
Marathon in November/December (location and exact date TBD)

So there it is. Concrete goals to hold me accountable, especially because now you blog readers know about them.

Step One: Make goals.
Step Two: Move towards goals.
Step Three: Accomplish goals.

I mean, how hard can training for a marathon be? Amiright?

I know, I get it. I just realized I don't want to be forty years old and saying to myself, "I always wanted to run a marathon. I was just a lazy piece of crap." So in order to avoid that statement, here I go! Have a little faith.

Becca drove me to the airport bright and early this morning. I was incredibly tired. Mostly from the fact that I didn't technically sleep last night. Turns out doing laundry the night before leaving on a one-day trip is not only completely unnecessary but also rather time-consuming, especially when the dryer doesn't feel like doing its' job. It's okay though, I ended up sleeping for both legs of my silly flight from LAX to Phoenix to Tucson. I hardly remember us taking off or landing, which usually are my least favorite parts. I always try and make my peace with the world before those moments, just in case. Phew, luckily that turned out okay.

My dear friend BRYAN picked me up from the airport. I've missed his sweet face and great advice. We had a delicious lunch at Oregano's, complete with a compulsory pizookie for good measure. It's been weird in LA without Bryan. We've been rather spoiled with each other's company for the last couple of years in Darwin, seeing each other several days a week. One more year and he's got to make the move though...

After lunch my mom and I went to pick up the GINORMOUS Uhaul that we so ambitiously chose from the other appropriately sized trucks. It looks like this, but doesn't have a fish on the side. I wish it did.

Andy (Alison's husband and one of my dearest friends) and Dan (a fellow Darwin and the funniest guy I know) were nice enough to come over to help load up the truck in the Arizona heat. Luckily I had already consolidated everything into boxes and make-shift containers. Andy was making fun of my packing skills and haphazard labels, his personal favorite being: "Utensils and Boots".

Here's a picture of the gang hard at work (Mum's behind, Andy, and Dan). We got everything loaded in only 35 minutes. Amazing. As soon as I get that KitchenAid mixer off the truck it's going to be hard at work on some thank you chocolate chip cookies. The best kind.

I stopped by to see my lovely friend BRI, who will be moving out to LA next year, too! I miss that girl like crazy. Huh, now that I think about it, I really accomplished a lot of friend seeing today in my less than 24 hour Tucson visit. The pinnacle being my best friend Alison.

Here's the two of us cheekily posing with a watermelon margarita at Guadalajara Grill. Man, you guys weren't kidding when you told me that LA didn't have good Mexican food. Rachel and I keep trying to find good Mexican food places to no avail. I daresay it almost compares to the poor excuse for Mexican food in England. (shudder). So of course, Guadalajara Grill was on the top of my list. A taco salad, margaritas, and Alison-time make me a happy girl.

Alison has been my very best friend since we were about six years old. We have been through it all--- not being invited to certain households that shall go unnamed because we were too "hyper" and "wild", long endless summers watching old movies and playing in the pool, awkward preteen years (with hairy legs on her part and a lisp on mine), birthday parties that were only complete if we slept in a tent or had a slice of dirt cake, high school dances, golf team, acting in play after play after musical, U of A football games, movie outings with far too much movie popcorn, family vacations, bizarre women's lib presentations, and to end us on a classy note, tea parties. We've been inseparable.

The distance has been very sad for the both of us. We always knew this was going to happen though-- she's a Tucson family girl and I guess I am a California adventure girl (not to be confused with the roller coaster). It's evolving into a new kind of friendship-- the kind that doesn't get tended to in person everyday but has to receive attention in other ways. We're working on it, mostly through phone tag. But boy do we miss each other!

I'm really going to miss Tucson, too. I wish I could have had one last monsoon before I headed back. Drat. Though when I was driving today I did enjoy the lanes that seemed to stretch for miles with no other cars in sight. Tucson seems like a ghost town compared to LA now. It's so cute how everything closes here at a reasonable time and no one is driving like they are on fire.

I'm going to miss U of A, too. It was so weird driving by campus today, looking at all the quiet brick buildings and the empty mall. It's hard to believe I'm not going back. I'm a college graduate y'all. When did that happen?

Man, that was fun.

Okay, I'm tired. I'm packing up the last handful of things in the morning and hitting the road in that big silly Uhaul. Wish me luck. So weird that all my stuff will be in one place after all this. Especially my most precious cargo, Frasier. I can't wait to have him with me all the time, following me around and most likely biting my ankles.

Wow. What a day. Bang people, I missed you a lot tonight. It was weird not being there. Hope the show went well.

Have a good day, friends. Kisses.