What Kind of Runner Are You?

I saw a link for a 'What Kind of Runner Are You?" test on facebook today, and it was calling my name. I had a pretty good idea as to what the outcome would be (Tink: You are a Robot). But, since that wasn't one of the categories you could fall in...I'll take what I got. And, no I didn't cheat! The quiz doesn't tell you what the different categories you could fall in are before hand, I guess I just have myself pegged pretty well :-)

And the type of runner I am is...............THE WARRIOR

"You are motivated primarily by competition, and you think of running in terms of race training. You would still run if you had to give up racing but not nearly as intensely. You’re likely to understand the science of physical performance and find fulfilment from testing your limits."

Pretty cool, eh? Robot, warrior, it's all good!

Where do you fall? Go take the quiz and find out!
http://www.runnersworld.co.uk/general/what-type-of-runner-are-you/2955.html

Happy Winter

I am going to shock all of you by saying that I am not sick of snow, or horrified that GASP it's snowing in Spring (like it does almost every year in the MidWest, I don't know why everyone's acting so surprised this year).

Maybe its because I'm still loving cuddling up under my blanket mountain with a good book. Or that I run indoors all year round so weather doesn't make that much of a difference.

Teddy enjoys the benefits of the blanket mountain too.

Ooooor maybe because I dread having to go back to the land of steroid-filled frat boys at LA Fitness over the summer when the WPAFB Sweat Box gets too hot for me to elliptical without dying.

Either way, as long as the snow stays on the grass where it belongs, I'm ok with it sticking around a little more!  Here's some pretty pics I took driving to the gym on Base.

 

 

How's the weather treating you? Anyone else still happy its winter?

The Science of a Playlist

Music is a huge part of my workouts. If my iPod battery dies or my headphones go on the fritz, I am a wreck! Countless laps on the track are even more boring when you only have the sounds of your breathing and random powerwalkers belting out showtunes to provide the soundtrack to your run.

no music on Mom-tourage runs..We chat (and get slap happy) the whole time

But since I run and do the eliptical, I have 2 different playlists for each workout. For my runs, I need really fast-paced songs. Lately, I've just been tuning my pod to the 'Pop' Genre and hitting the skip button manically so I only get the fast beats...no wonder I go thru iPod wheels like water. And, when I say pop...I'm talking serious, bubble-gum and unicorns pop!
Some of the songs on heavy rotation for  my runs are:

- "Superhero" - Cher Lloyd
- "Supernatural" - Ke$ha
- "Friday Night" - Lily Allen
- "Silence" - Aly & AJ
- "You and I" - Medina


For the elipitcal workouts, I don't need songs to be quite as fast and usually listen to whatever new music I've recently added to my pod while I'm on there. It still has to be fast, but not as much as my runnings songs. Some examples of what I've been listening to lately:

- "Marilyn Monroe" - Nicki Minaj
- "Our Song" - Matchbox Twenty
- "Now" - Matt & Kim
- "Kill Everybody" - Skrillex
- "E V A Y" - Shiny Toy Guns


Of course, all of these are different from my race playlist which is a super hi-bred masterpiece that I have carefully crafted over the years. When I hear a new song, I know instantly if I want it as a race song....and then pretty much refuse to let myself listen to it any other time so it doesn't lose its epic-ness.  I'm excited to try racing to some new songs I've recently added


- "Up in the Air" - 30 Seconds to Mars (oh, how I love thee)
- "My Signature Move" - Pink



What about you? Is there any one song you absolutely love to run or work out to? Do you listen to different music for different types of workouts?

Magic Carpet Ride

Phew! Let me tell you, this painting was tough! I spent an entire Saturday trying to sketch Jasmine's face. Aladdin came out just fine, piece of cake. But Jasmine? Noooooooooo.

Right when I was thinking I'd won the war on all Disney princesses, this foxy little minx proved me wrong. I tried not 1, not 2, but 3 times to get her face right. Each 1-2 hour sketching attempt resulted in me throwing down my pencil and having to walk away....and then feeling super depressed with myself.

I went to dinner that night feeling washed up, like I might as well throw in the towel. But then, I came home, grabbed my 80th pencil and finally got her face just right. The impossible can be done (and I may have channeled Dave Chappelle and screamed "Gotcha bitch!" when I was done)!

Here is "Magic Carpet Ride"

 



And finally.....

"Magic Carpet Ride"
18" x 24" acrylic original on canvas

 

And now the Turtle tells me there's a fan art contest going on for the video game Halo. So, I was swapping between paintings while waiting for each's paint to dry this weekend. I was going out of my mind trying to keep them straight! I'm lucky I didn't start painting flowers and stars on Masterchief!

Mutant Mermaid

Here's my latest and greatest!

"It Ain't Easy Bein' Green, Ariel" - 18" x 24" acrylic original on canvas

It hadn't really been my intention to turn Ariel into an alien. I was thinking more of oceanic and water type colors when I picked the green and blue. But, now that I see the overall effect, I like it! I think it suits her :-)

I'm working on an Aladdin and Jasmine painting next. It's taking me a little longer because I'm finding it hard to motivate myself when there are Yahoo! News articles about North Korea to obsess over. Only 2 more days til the Turtle comes home from Seoul and I swear, I'm going to clock my fastest pace ever when I sprint into his arms at the airport! 

Due to the Korea stress, I had a fantastic run yesterday. I ran almost 6.75 miles straight before stopping for a water break....Now, I just need to time his travels to crazy countries with races!

Starving Artist

And the journey of the starving artist continues. Ok, I'm being overly dramatic, but I've earned a few wallows! Its a rainy Monday and I sent my handsome Turtle off to the perfectly peaceful Korean peninsula for the week. Nope, nothing newsworthy going on over in Asia. Nothing at all.

I will not worry. I will not worry. I will not worry.

But, in other news, I started a Facebook page for The Running Paintbrush! Now, you can keep up-to-date with all my paintings and art news. I'd love it if you 'liked' my page, I've been obsessively checking my 'likes' and could really use some more!

Also super exciting- my paintings are now available in prints! I found a really good printing store, and am now selling prints of my paintings! They are available in a variety of sizes (and also more affordable!). So far, I've only made a few prints of my Beauty & the Beast painting, to test the waters, but they've gotten a bunch of hits on my Etsy site. And of course, if anyone wanted a size or print of one I don't have listed, I can easily make a print order for that one.

Mom's coming to babysit me tonight :-) which is perfect since its the Bachelor Finale! Wahoo!

It's a Me, Mario!

I know I know, I have gotten soooo lazy with posting. But, I haven't gotten lazy with anything else! I've been putting in some really good miles and ellipticallings. I signed up for the first part of the Towpath Trilogy, which is a 5 mile race in April (here's hoping the weather cooperates!). And, look up at the top of the screen! I've got a snazzy new logo. I feel like a professional now!

I decided to take a little break from Disney and take a stab at a different cartoon. The Turtle is a huge video game nerd, so I did this in honor of him.

And finally....

"Mario Kart"  an 18" x 24" acrylic original on canvas

I even sent a pic of it to Nintendo and they liked it! This is what they said, "Your Mario Kart painting is quite spectacular, and I'd be happy to share it with others here at Nintendo. Again, we really appreciate your enthusiasm."

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!! I know that really doesn't mean anything, but it made me feel good!