Stoked

Breakthrough run on Sunday: broke the 50 minute threshold on 10K at the Whole Foods race yesterday. And Little E raced, running in the 4 year olds 100m! Super fun.

(Prep notes for self: solid three weeks of training -- typically 5 tempo and a 7 easy, one speed on treadmill, 2x bike, 3x strength -- only easy 5 week of race, but kept up bike intervals and strength all the way to Friday; speed workout limited but hard; ate light the week of; big the day before and gu'd 15 mins. before start (Cola Clif shot.))

OK, enough nerdin' out. Great weekend. Visited friends in Mountain View for dinner Saturday, the race Sunday, beautiful weather all around.

...And Not the Good Kind of Attention

I hit the newstand downstairs, indoor and tiny, trying to find a skate magazine.

Slightly arrogant Marina girl is reading a Vogue; Islamocapitalist woman of unknown country of origin working the register beneath a promotional cigarette plexgilas arch.

I start in the sports section. Nothing. I go to hobbies, motorcycles, guns, pretty much by rotating my body, but now and then sidestepping along the perimeter of the store. Nope. OK, how about lifestyle stuff, music and fashion? Rolling Stone, Q, Mazim, FHM. Suddenly, I find myself in the no man's land between the magazines where cover models have their mouths closed, and the magazines where they have their mouths open.

"Hey," I call across to the cashier, who is wearing what might be described as a demi-Burkha, "do you have Transworld?"

"I don't know. Is that new?" she says, gesturing toward the adult section. Oh, boy. Marina chick scans the room and scowlsl.

"No. Well, do you have Thrasher?"

Cashier gives me The Big Eyes and says "Oh, no, we don't carry THAT." Marina girl looks at me sideways and leaves.

Uh, sorry.

Santa Barbara, Day 2

Friday, we followed our newly adopted morning routine: oatmeal, hardboiled eggs, cantaloupe, bagels and croissants at the motel, then over to Coffee Bean across the street for some real caffeination. For the purpose of getting O to nap, we drove from Arroyo Burro -- a northerly beach -- down to Butterfly Beach at the south end and back to Arroyo Burro. We set up on the beach, played in the waves, E and I jogged from one end to the other, and we ate some lunch from the snack bar.

Back at the motel for O's nap, E and I swam in the pool, then it was time for dinner. Actually, we got over to State Street an hour ahead of our reservations at Palazzio, so we stopped in Chicken Little, a children's clothing and toy shop, and K bought a birthday present for a friend. Next door to Chicken Little was a nicely stocked Copeland's boardshop, and E had been encouraging me to get my birthday skateboard while we were in Santa Barbara... so I wheeled O and his stroller in and picked out an Almost deck, Independent trucks, and some wheels and bearings and the guy behind the counter had me hooked up in no time.

The skate-posing began immediately upon arrival at the restaurant, where I asked the hostess to stash my skate. I hate to but have to admit that I actually felt slightly cool. Heh.