“Decide what to be, and go be it.”
-Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise by the Avett Brothers
Monthly Archives: October 2013
Adventures in Pittsburgh: Exploring Oakland
This weekend my mom came to town. Woohoo! It was the first time I got the chance to show someone around my new city. Hard to believe I’ve been in Pittsburgh for three months already…
We started our day with brunch at The Porch, which was lovely. I highly recommend the salted caramel French toast! Back in Madison, weekly brunch was a staple of a Saturday or Sunday morning, so it was good to kickstart my brunch-going in Pittsburgh with my mom.
Afterwards, we explored the Oakland neighborhood a bit, including wandering through Schenley Park and the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon campuses. Coming from the Midwest, it’s refreshing to see beautiful, old academic buildings. Actually, it’s refreshing to see old buildings in general! Thanks to The Fire, Chicago is pretty lacking in old structures. One of my greatest joys in Pittsburgh is admiring the old brick home and Gilded Age architecture.
Some other great sites in Oakland include:
–Carnegie Museum of Art and Natural History
-The trails at Schenley Park
-The Cathedral of Learning at University of Pittsburgh (second-tallest educational building in the world)
Adventures in Pittsburgh: Carnegie Museums
Arabian artifacts, dinosaur fossiles, glittering cases of gem stones, Renaissance paintings, and of course conceptual sculpture. These are just a few things to completely and totally over-stimulate your mind at the Carnegie Museum of Art and Natural History. As if a museum of either natural history or art wouldn’t be enough, the two are connected (under one roof and under one admission fee), so be sure to plan a whole day around this museum.
The Roads of Arabia exhibit was excellent. Beautiful, intriguing artifacts combined with video, tours, and very helpful volunteers, make this exhibit a success in my book. I spent at least a half hour in there, which I think is a pretty good testament on how much the exhibit held my attention (for an art major, I move pretty quickly through museums…)!
The art portion of the museum held an array of everything from Renaissance to Impressionism, to my personal favorite, conceptual sculpture and installation. Sadly, this piece by one of my favorite artists, Rirkrit Tiravanija, was not open. Which means I’ll be back!
Thankfully, a good supply of Alexander Calder works made up for my disappointment over Tiravanija’s closed exhibit.
All this because the Andy Warhol Museum was closed and I was bent on spending my President’s day at a museum. Maybe that’ll be next week’s adventure…
“You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.” -Max Ehrmann
Best Advice I Can Think of for New Triathletes
About a month ago, I competed in my first triathlon. Generally, I’m pretty relentless when it comes to researching something I’m about to seriously commit time and energy (and sweat and tears) to. When I trained for my first marathon, I read books, talked to experienced athletes, made friends with my local running shop, and otherwise drowned myself in any and all marathon knowledge. My foray into triathlon was different in only one respect: I researched even harder.
My mom is a pretty amazing athlete herself. She competed in her first half marathon this summer (having had very little prior running experience besides her training and coming away injury free- something I can’t boast at 23). Now, she says (and I plan on holding her to it!) she’s up for racing in the Finger Lakes Triathlon with me next year. So this list is for you, Mom! And anyone else who’s bold enough to tri.
First things first:
Triathlons aren’t as intense as they seem. Not that you have to tell your friends and admirers that. I don’t mean to say that the race won’t push you to your limits (and beyond, if you let it), but that the triathlon community is actually very encouraging and supportive. There is nothing more relieving than sharing your pre-race jitters with a fellow athlete. And most are willing to relate. I got quick bike maintenance advice from a veteran Ironman and embarrassing wet suit tips (yep, I was the girl who tried putting her wet suit on inside out) from a group of young women triathletes. Nobody is there to judge you, and if you make it to the start line, you can be sure that you’ve garnered a whole hell of a lot of respect from everyone of those wet suit-glad athletes around you.
Great Reads:
From inspirational to super practical, these books were some of my best reads to jump start my training.
Triathlon 101 by John Mora
This is a great read for beginners as it breaks down just about everything you would need to know to race your first tri. It also has fairly detailed training plans for the most common tri distances, which is why I picked up the book in the first place.
Every Woman’s Guide to Cycling by Selene Yeager
I recommend this book to my girl friends who are considering buying their first bike but don’t know where to begin. The author provides a great quiz and lots of details to guide you on the big purchase. She also gives lots of useful information on cycling in general (particularly with women in mind). I enjoyed reading a women’s-specifc book because, as a petite women, I felt like there might be some logistical things (like finding the right sized bike) that a more general cycling book wouldn’t provide.
Born to Run by Christopher McDougall
An inspirational true story of a long-hidden tribe of ultra runners and the crazy American ultra champions who decided to race them. I’ve heard this book (rightfully) called the runner’s bible. It’s informational, inspirational, motivational, and reminds runners that as focused as our sport is on the individual, we are all part of amazing community.
Eat & Run by Scott Jurek
Another inspirational non-fiction read about ultra marathon champion Scott Jurek and his experience with running…and you guessed it, eating. Jurek is a vegan athlete whose dedication to personal as well as physical and athletic health is inspiring. So inspiring that I immediately went on a six mile run after finishing the book.
Swim Drills:
The most difficult leg of the race for me (mentally, anyway), was and still is the swim. Unlike running and cycling, swimming requires you to focus relentlessly on technique and efficiency. Not that technique doesn’t matter for the other disciplines, but you can’t just expect to put hours and hours in the pool and see speed and endurance results. Swimming takes careful focus on techniques, a large part of which is breathing. I recommend taking lessons if you aren’t a strong swimmer or joining a local swim club. Even having an experienced swimmer friend analyze your stroke is worth it!
Breath easy swimming tips and drills
Open Water Swimming & Wet Suits:
It’s a good idea to practice at least one open water swim before race day. During the course of my research, I read horror stories about the massive difference between pool and open water swimming. It freaked me out considerably, since swimming in a pool was hard enough for me. I managed to squeeze in one open water swim with my wet suit in before the race and one thing I noticed: yes, open water is different, but you can do it because let’s be real, swimming in swimming. You might battle more waves, more people, and no guiding lap line in the water, but take heart that if you stick to your swim training you’re probably going to be just fine. If you can’t manage a practice swim during your training, I suggest trying to get a quick dip in the day before your race at the starting point. It’s a massive relief on the nerves to test out the waters!
And what about wet suits? My best tip: use one if you can! Wet suits provide more buoyancy in the water, which helps in swimming (obviously). It was also a relief to me to know that if I panicked in the water (which I did by the way), I could simply turn over on my back and float. I chose a sleeveless suit for my first race because I was using a rental and wanted the security of knowing I’d have free range of movement in my arms.
Buy and rent new and used wet suits from Xterra
Bike Maintenance:
For my first race, besides drowning in the swim leg, my second worst nightmare was getting a flat tire. My local bike shop offered a class on changing a flat, during which I could change the tire on my own bike. It was the best research I could do, but I also reviewed some great informative videos to keep myself up to speed.
How to fix a flat tire
How to inflate a bike tire with CO2
Ok, now some straight up inspiration:
Seriously, you can do it.
Related posts:
Running Hard, Getting Healthy, & Going (Almost) Vegan
Wine Bottles Shouldn’t be Anything But Beautiful
In my humble opinion. 🙂
The Easy, Healthy, Cheap Popcorn Recipe
This recipe is so simple, I don’t know how I didn’t know about it for so long! Recently, my friend told me the easiest way to make healthy popcorn your way:
Pour a few tablespoons of olive oil into a large pot. Add salt, pepper, garlic, or whatever other delicious combos you can think of! Pour in 1/4 cup of popcorn kernels. Be sure to add the lid to the pot, then set on medium high heat until the kernels begin to pop. Shake the pan occasionally to be sure the kernels don’t burn and are evenly coated in the oil and seasoning. In true vegan fashion, I added one and half tablespoons of nutritional yeast (kind of like vegan cheese topping) to the popcorn. Super easy, as healthy (or not) as you want, and also cheap (I bought my kernels in bulk at Whole Foods for a couple bucks). Yum!
My Little Sister is “Accepting Feminism”
My little sister has done it again. She has a tendency to write thoughtful, intelligent articles about feminism today. That’s right, the f word. Why would a 21-year-old care so much about crusty, old feminist theory? Maybe it was the influence of our inspiring lawyer mom. Or maybe she got sick of people asking if she was going to be dental hygienist when she told them she was studying dentistry (actually, she’s going to be a real, full-fledged dental school-educated dentist!). Or maybe it was her inspirational older sister who studied finance, quoted Gloria Steinem too many times, and encouraged her girlfriends to “just ask him out yourself, already!” Maybe I’m giving myself too much credit 🙂
Either way, Michelle’s article, titled “Accepting Feminism”, is too good to pass up. Here’s a short excerpt. Be sure to check out the rest on the RIT Reporter’s website.
“Men most often feel the effects of our patriarchal society as it impacts the women closest to them: their sisters, mothers and friends. Feeling disconnected from the movement, some men may have trouble relating to feminism. While this isn’t justifiable, it is understandable.”
Three years ago I expressed this sentiment in a Reporter views article aimed at convincing women to proudly accept the title of feminist. This time around, I’m calling out the men.
While it’s true that most men are not quick to accept the label of feminist – a Huffington Post/YouGov poll revealed that only 16 percent of men ascribe this word to themselves—I believe that the majority of men do, in fact, support feminism’s main belief. In my last article, I worded this belief as: “men and women are moral, political and social equals.” Although I would now include “and people of all genders” in this statement, the point still stands. With a similar definition of feminism, the Huffington Post poll asked this question: “Do you believe that men and women should be social, political, and economic equals?” Out of 1,000 people surveyed, 83 percent responded “yes” to this question. With only 23 percent of women in the poll identifying as a feminist, it’s clear that both genders had significantly more agreeable view of feminism once the dirty f-word was removed.
When you get down to the foundation of what feminism means, both men and women are clear supporters. By avoiding association with the label of feminism, men buy into the stereotype of feminists as radical, head-shaven, man-haters and give others permission to do the same. However, by accepting the role of feminist and helping to de-bunk the negative stereotype, men can help create a more equal society, a job too big for just one gender to do. Moreover, men should be willing to support a movement that aims at breaking traditional roles that negatively impact their gender as well…. Read on here.
Rabbit, Rabbit
Happy first day of October!
p.s. A British superstition stipulates that one must repeat the word “rabbit” to ensure good luck for the coming month. But be sure it’s the first thing you say that morning! I learned it from my Latin teacher. Now you know, too 🙂
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