Ang's Journal

Alan & I got back home on Thursday from our delayed honeymoon to Costa Rica. We spent four nights in Tamarindo & three nights in Playa del Coco. Overall, the trip was good but not great, in large part because Alan got traveler's diarrhea at the end of our time in Tamarindo & is only feeling better today.

My highlights from the trip:

• We went on a snorkeling trip on a catamaran that left from the harbor at Tamarindo. The snorkeling was unremarkable, but the trip became an impromptu whale-watching trip on the way home when we encountered a humpback whale. Alan had never seen a whale before & the look on his face paid for the whole trip.
  
• On our last day at the beach in Playa del Coco, I was swimming laps to a platform anchored off-shore when I started talking to an older Canadian gentleman. His name was Robin Lajoie & he is a world-record holder for long-distance butterfly. We talked for a little bit while sitting on the platform & then he casually mentioned that there was a shipwreck located about a quarter-mile further out from the platform & would I like to go free-drive around the wreck?
  
  UM HELL YES
  
  We swam out there & had the place to ourselves (because, half-mile swim to get there). There were thousands of fish & the wreck sat in about 20-25 ft of water. I had so much fun that I kept coming to the surface, floating on my back, & just laughing into the sky.
  
• In general, the food was delicious. Lots of seafood & tropical fruits, obviously, but there was also a lot of incredible beef. Also, fried plantains. I love fried plantains to an incredible degree & I ate some every day, nearly with every meal.

I want to capture some thoughts on how I can improve future travels:

• Get a backpack to use as a suitcase. Currently, I have a gigantic Samsonite suitcase. I always end up overpacking because the darn thing is just so big. Then I end up hauling a 45+ pound suitcase all over the place, because if it fits, I pack it.
  
• Do your research. I have gotten lazy about researching places before visiting, telling myself that I want to be "open to experiences" or "relaxing, not checking off tasks". But I have taken this too far. On this trip, I would've been very well-served to do more research on destinations (which hopefully would've had us avoiding Tamarindo) & things to do. I'm not saying this wasn't a fun & relaxing vacation, but we also left a lot of experiences un-experienced. Alan says we should've done more research TOGETHER, because different people will think of different questions & have different priorities.
  
• Be incognito. I learned from a travel blog (too late to help on this trip) that it is a good idea to do all your travel research & bookings while browsing incognito. Apparently, many travel websites (including AirBnB) change their offered prices based on your browsing history.
  
• Get more diverse. We booked stays in two beach towns, back-to-back. While we did end up liking one a lot more than the other (Playa del Coco >>> Tamarindo) it would've been even better to have had a few days inland in the cloud forest/mountains.
  
• Put more thought into transport. We didn't rent a car & I think that was the right decision (driving in CR is a little wild), but once we got to our AirBnBs, we were kinda stuck there because we had done zero research on buses, taxis, etc.

Since I chose the country for this trip, Alan gets to choose the next destination. He has selected ICELAND. September 2025, bitches!

Goals from last year:

1) I will attend at least 100 SQUID practices this year.

Not even close. I did 26 swim practices this year. I need to find another workout venue, because Squid weekday practices are inconvenient enough to be a real disincentive, & I never make Saturday practices because we're always on the go on the weekends. Possible alternatives: swimming at Denver Recreation facilities, finding another team with better practice times, or maybe picking up a different activity. I have toyed with the idea of just throwing myself into skiing & hiking, & maybe doing yoga.

2) I will compete in at least one swimming competition this year, either a pool meet or an open-water event.

Nope. I let my uncertainty about my new job derail my training & missed all the summer events.

3) I will overpay my mortgage by at least $4,000 this year.

Nope. We overpaid by $1,916.05. Good but not great. Still, we have done well in our first year of homeownership. We owe $320,172.25 on the mortgage, & our realtor estimates our house could sell for around $370,000. Our neighborhood has been proposed for historic district designation, which would likely drive up values. We're doing well with Breezehome.

4) I will earn, in some fashion, some income from any source OTHER than my AECOM paycheck.

Yessss.

5) I will log at least 30 Whole30-compatible meals a month into MyPaleoPal.

No. I have actually done an about-face on this. Instead, I have been attending Overeaters Anonymous & trying to work through some of my weird issues around food.
-----------------
Health: Weird year. I worked on mental health for a while, then stopped. I worked on weight loss, then realized I'm all fucked up in the head about weight & food. I feel good but I need more exercise for sure. Still not sleeping well. It's not been a great year healthwise. But I did achieve some of the specific goals I had last year: I grew some food in my own garden, I learned how to brew kombucha (I have a batch going right now), & I'm eating more seafood & vegetables than ever before.

HEALTH GRADE: Change in direction required.

Wealth: We did pretty well this year! We didn't make any huge outlays, & didn't realize any huge windfalls. We just plugged along, paying down debts, saving money in assets. Very boring, very pedestrian.

Change in assets, 2016: increased by $55,011.64
Change in debts, 2016: decreased by 10,817.27
Change in rough net worth, 2016: increased by $65,828.91

WEALTH GRADE: Steady Freddy.

Happiness: This year has been volatile. HPG & I nearly broke up in late summer. I'd say we are doing much better now. My job transition was stressful, but overall I think it was a good move. Larger trends - political, mostly - have made me wonder if our world is worth saving. We've made some good friends in our neighborhood, & met even more great people this year. I've spent tons of time in the mountains, exploring the beautiful areas around Denver. But the year's finish - the surprise discovery of my elder brother Richard - means that 2016 can never be anything but amazing.

HAPPINESS GRADE: Despite everything, would 2016 again.

Plans for 2017

I dunno. I did so badly with my resolutions in 2016 so maybe this year I'll just see how things go. Or I may write another post later with some modest goals.

WARMUP = 300 yards

300 free 50 swim / 25 drill about 5:00

FIRST SET = 600 yards

8 x 75 25 backstroke kick / 25 stroke IM order / 25 free swim 2:00

SECOND SET = 1,000 yards

10 x 100 free swim 1:55 (1:35 in)

WARMDOWN = 100 yards

100 easy

Total workout = 2,000 yards in ~40-45 minutes
2016 cumulative distance = 62,000 yards (35.2 miles)

I don't have a good record of this practice. It was a lot of short reps, & everything was "last 25 fast". Then we did a good deal of drilling on sculling technique. The water & air temperature was way too hot, & I skipped quite a bit.


Total workout (best guess) = 2,500 yards in ~90 minutes
2016 cumulative distance = 58,350 yards (33.2 miles)

I didn't write down the workout, but Coach John said it was 3,000 yards in just over an hour. Workout highlight: a 600-yard set that was breathe every 3 / breathe every 5 by 50. This would have been challenging at sea level; here in the Mile High City, it was impossible for me.

Total workout = 3,000 yards in ~65 minutes.
I did 3,000 yards.
Cumulative distance with the SQUID = 11,750 yards (6.77 miles).

WARMUP = 1,100 yards

300 EZ mix of free swim, free drill, & backstroke
200 swim / 200 kick / 200 pull / 200 swim all free, :30 rest between reps

FIRST SET = 400 yards

8 x 50 25 kick/25 swim odds IM, evens free :20 rest

SECOND SET = 400 yards

4 x 100 kick mix of free/breast :30 rest
I was VERY careful kicking breastroke, but the groin muscle I pulled last week felt OK.

THIRD SET = 450 yards

6 x 75 25 swim/25 drill/25 swim all free :20 rest

WARMDOWN = 400 yards

2 x 200 easy free :30 rest

Total workout = 2,750 yards in ~90 minutes.
I did 2,750 yards.
Cumulative distance with the SQUID = 6,250 yards (3.55 miles).

It's AWFUL that it has taken me nearly three months to make it to my first Squid practice of the year. But - it did. Alas. Strive to do better.

As it turned out, it was a weird practice, because most of the team was at a meet today. I was the ONLY swimmer there, so Coach Pat got in & worked out with me.

WU:
300 stroke (I did 50 free, 25 back or breast)
200 pull free
100 stroke (I did 25 fly/25 back/25 breast/25 back)

8 x
(50 25 drill/25 build 1:00
25 DPS :30)
odds free, evens stroke (I did back/breast)

3 x 100 free :15 R (I did ~1:30 in, 1:45 out)

BREASTSTROKE DRILLS: undulating, sculling, with flutter kick - all new-style breaststroke, which I found very challenging since I've never bothered to update my stroke.

3 x 100 free :15 R (I did ~1:30 in, 1:45 out)

MORE BREASTSTROKE DRILLS: snapping the elbows down & in on recovery, using kick to power over-water (or, near-the-top-of-the-water) arm recovery. How not to get disqualified for a butterfly kick in the breaststroke event.

3 x 75 (breast/free/free, free/breast/free, free/free/breast) :15 R (don't remember my interval)
3 x 25 breast ~:40

WD:
100 free easy

TOTAL: 2,200 yards (1.25 miles), plus some small amount of yardage during the drills.

YAY!!

So, I was home in Texas for all of five days & managed to sneak a day-long trip to Corpus in there. And while in Corpus, I did a sprint triathlon. This plan originated as a challenge between me & my brother weedweasel. But weedweasel got too busy with work this winter, & he decided to withdraw. I mocked him for this decision, then decided to go ahead & do the triathlon myself anyway.

I nearly didn't do this race in three different ways. First of all, at some point on Friday afternoon I misplaced my driver's license. I wasn't sure I would be able to pick up my race packet without it, but they took my FEMA ID without any trouble. One bullet dodged. We heard Dave Scott speak at the pre-race briefing - he was the guest of honor & sort of the Grand Marshal for the whole event. He is basically the uncrowned King of Triathlon & a bit of a personal hero, so that was pretty awesome.

Of course, after months & months of unrelenting drought, Friday night in Corpus featured a TORRENTIAL downpour, complete with intermittent thunder & lightning. While the increase in rain was definitely a good thing, I wasn't sure the race was even going to happen in the morning. Then, on Friday evening after we got to the hotel in CC, I dropped one of my contact lenses directly down the drain of the hotel sink. Happily, I was able to dismantle the U-bend underneath the sink & recover my lens. (I am sure this earned me the undying wrath of the hotel maintenance crew.) With some serious cleaning, it was fine.

When I got to the race on Saturday morning (at 6 AM), it wasn't actually raining. But it was overcast, so when the swim started just after 7 AM, it was DARK. Dark enough that spotting the buoys that marked the race course was rather difficult! But I managed to stay on course & I finished the swim very strong - actually, I was the fourth woman overall out of the water. I heard Dave Scott announcing my name ("Now exiting the water we have... Angela Ledgerwood!") & that was AWESOME. But during the bike portion of the race, it started to pour & visibility got pretty bad. At one point, a biker in front of me dropped her water bottle & I hit it, almost crashing (at 15 mph, that would have been painful to say the least). I am ashamed to say that the adrenaline shock of the near-crash actually did make me cry just a little bit - but it was raining so hard that no-one could tell, so that was all right. When I got off the bike & changed into my running shoes, I discovered that they were soaked & it felt like they each weighed ten pounds. The run was pretty much a disaster - I had been so nervous about crashing on the bike that I didn't drink enough electrolytes, so my legs cramped up something awful during the run. Despite that, I finished the run, with hotpantsgalore running with me for the last 500 yards or so. My final time was 1:50.51. About a month ago, I predicted a time of 1:52 - so hooray! I beat my prediction by one whole minute!

Overall, the experience was very good. I didn't really learn anything that I didn't already know - I am a better swimmer than most triathletes, & a terrible runner. Hydration is very important. My endurance needs some work. But I also got a race under my belt for the first time in a very long time. I had pretty awful Race Day conditions, & I still finished almost right on my prediction. I was able to train, even while working 60 hours a week & living in a hotel. So quite a few of my excuses (out of race practice, no time, traveling too much) for NOT doing this before have been blown up.

Here are my splits:

750-meter swim 0:14:44.680
T1 0:03:25.443
12.4-mile bike 0:50:47.850
T2 0:03:12.062
3.11-mile run 0:38:41.690
TOTAL 1:50:51.725

I think I need to pick my next race soon, before I get lazy again!

( memorial )

Caption: Charlie, Joan, Cindy, and Mark at IGLA 2001 in Toronto.