Word Association for March 11th

Here's this week's word association.

1. Align :: Straighten
2. Collar :: White
3. Orphan :: Annie
4. Program :: Computer
5. Waves :: Ocean
6. Accident :: Car
7. Offices :: Work
8. Corrupt :: Politician
9. Tears :: Cry
10. Family :: Visit

Weekly TV Recap for March 9th

I haven't had a chance to watch Nikita yet, but here's the rest of my TV thoughts for the week.

Once Upon a Time – I can certainly see where Mary Margaret is coming from, but her change in attitude is going to spell bad news.  And I knew that even before they showed us the preview of the episode.  And they told us how Neal could still be so young – he’s a lost boy!  I love it!!  Now, to see how next week turns out.  I’m very, very worried about it.

White Collar – Speaking of worried, how could they leave us with that cliffhanger????  And Neal’s dad running off like that?  They’d better nail him and good.  Is it fall yet?

Survivor – Well the team of fans finally made some smart decisions by voting off the weakest player.  Alliances are good, but if they blind you to what needs to be done to help your team, they’re just stupid.  I’m not sorry to see the guy leave, although I’m sorry to see him leaving for medical reasons.

Psych – I knew where they were ultimately going with this one early on.  I just wonder how long Shawn’s mom will be around.  One episode?  More?  Not the best episode, but entertaining

The Big Bang Theory – I really like Raj with this gal.  I hope she sticks around for at least a few more episodes.  And he is so sweet with her.  Granted, we’ve seen that side of him before.  The guys at the school was cringe worthy, but I did enjoy the ladies going to Disneyland (naturally).

Word Association - Birthday Edition

I'd better do a quick word association post or it won't happen this week.

1. Schedule :: Work
2. Guest :: Party
3. Stall :: Horse
4. Cold :: Weather
5. Editorial :: Opinion
6. Striped :: shirt
7. Curtains :: Night
8. Cramping :: Foot
9. March :: Soldier
10. Folder :: Paper

Mardi Gras Madness 5K 2013

This past Saturday was the Mardi Gras Madness 5K here in town, and I did it for the second year in a row.

The course was the same as last year.  It was pretty much flat except for the bridge they have us use to cross over the main street and get to the bike path.  Starts and ends in a strip mall. It’s actually kind of fun that way for something different.

Last year, it was my first time doing a 5K in under 30 minutes.  I was a bit slower than that this year – I completed it in 30:38.  But considering I’ve been running once a week most of the year, I’m actually okay with that.  If I’d been using my watch to pace myself, I probably could have done it under half an hour, but I really didn’t care.

Another difference this year was my roommate did it with me.  He beat me, but I was kind of expecting that.  And I think it was only by a couple of minutes.

This race benefits a program that trains teens in town to run the LA marathon.  What was fun is that two teens I know are part of the program this year, and I spotted one of them at the race directing traffic.  I got a kick out of that.

The weather was perfect, a tad nippy but warming up quickly.  In fact, it was so nice, I went to play ultimate Frisbee that morning after the run.  I just couldn’t sit inside on a day like that.

It did cool off that evening by the time I went out for a friend’s birthday party.  We were sitting outside for a while, and I wished I had brought by jacket.

Weekly TV Recap for March 2nd

Castle – I was right.  It really was all about Alexis.  And Sarah was cover/a draw for Castle’s dad.  I wish I hadn’t known we were going to meet him during sweeps since that took a big twist out of the show (and kind of helped me know it was Alexis), but it was still a cool episode.  I’ll be interested to see how finally meeting him plays out over the course of the rest of the season.

White Collar – I was almost liking the new boss, but then she had to go and be working for the enemy.  I was expecting that “twist” but I hoped to be proved wrong.  The case itself was fun, although I did feel a little sorry for the true artist.

Survivor – So is it wrong that I’m rooting for the Favorite over the Fans?  Especially if they are going to keep that one guy around.  He’s a whiner of the first order and needs to go.  Granted, there are several “favorites” I want to see off my TV as well, but he’s annoying me the most right now.

Arrow – A gripping episode.  I was worried that the man would die, so I was glad he didn’t.  Arrow revealing his identity to his friend?  Who’s next?  And the fact that he said he never intended to tell him?  Amazing honesty.  But just what is his mom into, and will she tried to kill this guy again?

Psych – It was good to have them back.  A bit more of a serious episode, but since they were coming back from that cliffhanger, I’m not surprised.  I also wasn’t surprised that Henry lived.  It’s not the kind of show to kill someone, plus Shawn and Henry’s relationship is a key to things.  The plot seemed to head off away from what happened last time, but that might just be me and my faulty memory since it’s been a year since the last episode aired.

Nikita - Amanda is devious and so vengeful.  She makes the best villain!  I think she's better while on the run than Percy ever was, although he was a pretty good villain, too.

Word Association for Feb. 28th

Last day of February.  Must to time for word association.

1. Scalp :: Hair
2. Fix :: Broken
3. Should :: Could
4. Believing :: Miracles
5. Cares :: Worries
6. Eyelash :: Eyes
7. Sick :: Healthy
8. Heart :: Beat
9. Marble :: Granite
10. Money back :: Guarentee

February Disneyland Trip

And you thought I’d forgotten to go to Disneyland in February?  Never!  I was just waiting until Saturday because it was Master’s Day at Disneyland.  And that meant I actually had people to hang out with.

Because the tickets were one park one day tickets, we stuck to Disneyland itself.  Angelique and I got there at the start of the day, which turned out to be 9.  Not because that’s when the park opened but because that’s when we got there.

Still, the lines weren’t that long, so we were able to get our normal early morning rides done before noon.  That included a trip through Splash Mountain, which was fun.  We sat at the back, so we didn’t get that wet.  In fact, we got wetter on our second trip through Pirates later.

Josh and Beth got there sometime around noonish, and we hooked up with them for the rest of the day.  That meant repeating some of the rides we’d already done.  Oh, darn.  We also did several rides we hadn’t gotten to.  No, we didn’t hit every single ride in the park, but we did come very close.

Of course, there were other Master’s people in the park, but most I only saw from a distance and didn’t really get a chance to talk to.

Frankly, a highlight of the day was a phone call to Marsha.  She was in Florida at Disney World for the Princess Half Marathon, and it was just too tempting not to call and wish her good luck.  Besides, how often are Trixie friends at opposite Disney Parks at the same time?  We chatted for about 15 minutes, and it was fun.

I knew they had changed their Fast Pass policy in Florida, but this is the first time I’d noticed it here in California.  All the machines had signs on them about coming back during the window.  And on the tickets themselves there is a note saying “We can not accommodate early or late arrivals.”  Granted, we always return during that window of time anyway, but I know others who ignored that window and came back whenever they felt like it.  Frankly, I’m happy to see them actually enforcing the rule since people were abusing it so much.  I do assume that if the ride is down when you come back, they’ll let you come back later, but that’s on them, not me.

Weekly TV Recap for February 23rd

Once Upon a Time – It was nice to have two theories confirmed.  Yes, Rumple’s son is Hnery’s father.  And yes, Rumple was ultimately behind the curse even if someone else had to enact it.  But Cora’s plan for Gold worries me as does his promise a long time ago to kill the boy who would be his undoing.  Nice complications coming in the remaining episodes this season.

Castle – Wow that was powerful.  I certainly felt for Castle multiple times, coming close to tears myself.  Nathan Fillion’s acting was amazing.  I’m just wondering if Sarah was the real target or if Alexis is?  Either way, I can’t wait to see how things turn out next week.

White Collar – I think I was expecting something more fun from the episode.  I enjoyed it, but it wasn’t the home run I wanted.  Elizabeth befriending the woman was nice, and the ending where Peter talked the guy down was great.  I guess fans are torn on Sarah, but I liked her and am sorry to see her character moving to London.  That’s just a little outside ankle bracelet range.

Survivor - I know who I want gone from the fans.  Then again, who knows how much of that is editting.  And amazing that not only have the fans found an idol but it's been outted as well.  Over on the favorites, Brandon is going to take over from Phillip as the crazy one this season.  I really can't wait for either of them to be gone.  Or even better, get both of them out of there.

Arrow - I enjoyed this episode more than last week.  Then again, there was little flashback.  What is the world is Oliver's mom into?  There's going to be a confrontation there, and I don't think I'm going to like the outcome.  I do like the techie being on the team and trying to speak some ethics into Oliver.  Don't know it will do any good, but it would be a nice counter point.

Necessary Roughness - I'm actually impressed they managed to deal with the player coming out without being all preachy.  And I liked the character growth we've seen in TK as a result.  I'm not sure I buy it, but I like it.  Several interesting cliffhangers.  Matt's girlfriend is pregnant.  The son taking off.  Nico being confronted.  I'm wondering where this is all going to wind up next season.  And I hope if this is the last season they are told in time to not leave us with cliffhangers.

Big Bang Theory - Poor Raj.  I feel sorry for him.  I hope this love interest doesn't completely break his heart.  And it would be nice to see him with one that lasts more than an episode or two.  Although if he gets a girlfriend, what's the point of the show since all of them have significant others.

Suits - I have no idea what that case was all about, but I don't think it really matters.  So, they've merged with another law firm.  That's going to set up an interesting new dynamic next season.  And what's going to happen now that Rachel knows the truth?  For that matter, how long will it take Harvey to forgive Mike for following Jessica's orders instead of his?  Is this merge going to be a good thing or a bad thing?  Color me intrigued for next season.

Nikita - I really feel sorry for Sean.  I mean, it's better than if he'd really died.  But being targeted by Amanda like that.  And it looks like Division is here to stay?  I hope they take it down and Amanda too before the series ends some way or other.

Lazy. Or Is It Tired?

Okay, so it’s probably really a little of both.  I think there’s only one week where I ran both Tuesday and Thursday so far in February.  I’ve been making it out once a week and then playing ultimate both Saturday and Sunday.

Last night, I was so tired by the time I got home, I could hardly function.  So I decided I just wasn’t going to run.  Yes, it was probably partially laziness on my part.  After all, if I had a race coming up, I’d be getting ready to run for sure.

I do have a 5K coming up in just over a week.  But really, I can do that no problem.  It will be building up for Tough Mudder in June that will really start to force me to run.

It doesn’t help that Wednesday is my big TV night right now with three shows since I didn’t give up Survivor.  And what is the one night of the week I’m not home to watch TV?  You guessed it.  So I find it calling to me by the time I get home.  Maybe now that I just have 30 minutes on Thursday itself, I won’t be quite as tempted to sit down and watch the instant I get home.

But really, if I would just go to bed earlier most nights, that would go a long way toward helping as well.  I’m surprised my alarm has woken me up most mornings.  I’m trying to do too much right now, but I don’t want to cut anything out.  I just wonder how long I can keep this pace going.

Word Association for February 20th

Here's my word association for this week.

1. Yellow and green :: Blue, Purple
2. Smiles :: Happy
3. Appear :: Disappear
4. Clouds :: Rain
5. Lucy :: I Love Lucy!
6. Dream :: Sleep
7. Picture :: Painting
8. Station :: Gas
9. Glass :: Window
10. Kaleidoscope :: Pretty