something tastes different

long run report
actually, yesterday’s 10.5 miler didn’t really feel long at all! i suppose that’s a good sign. accompanied by claire and katie (a PICU nurse = HARDCORE), the miles went by quickly and easily as we chatted about our jobs, training plans, and future race plans.

the course was hilly, but i actually liked the variety, and i have a feeling i’ll appreciate training on this terrain when (if?) i make it to thunder road. the weather was humid, but not too hot. on several occasions, i was struck by how pretty the duke forest trails really are — i think i may even try to bring a camera next time!

the course consists of about 2.25 miles to a loop, a 3 mile (hilly!) loop (done twice), and then 2.25 miles back. check out the consistency of our splits:

first half: 5.26 miles in 46:52, average 8:54/mi

second half: 5.25 miles in 46:25, average 8:50/mi
(mile splits on this half: 8:44, 9:13 (up), 9:11 (up), 8:34 (down), 8:32 (down), 2:09 (last 0.25 mi))

i did bite it on a patch of gravel (serves me right for trying to jump over things — in the moment, i forgot that SPATIAL RELATIONSHIPS ARE NOT MY FRIEND) and am sporting a rather unappealing-looking road rash on my arm, leg, and hand. but it didn’t really impact that run at all, and i guess it’s a good thing that my body can take a full-on plummet onto the road and stay intact. strong bones, right?

concert excitement: the buildup
i love going to concerts, although i have a horrible track record of bowing out at the last moment due to fatigue/bad weather/whatever. i think that now that i’m (mostly) past the indignities of intern year, my days of concert flakiness are behind me! i’m very excited to see ingrid michaelson tomorrow night with my sister in carrboro!

ever since seeing the decemberists in june and having a close-to-transcendental experience, i have decided that an important component to enjoying live music is to really KNOW the performers and their music beforehand. it’s just so much more interesting that way — comparing live to recorded versions, singing along in my head — so i’ve been purposely overdosing on ingrid all week.

i like her current album, but the lyrics from “die alone” still get me every time:

i woke up this morning, a funny taste in my head.
spackled some butter over my whole grain bread.
something tastes different, maybe it’s my tongue.
something tastes different, suddenly I’m not so young.

link to listen to die alone

maybe because i’m not so young, myself . . . and it did seem to happen rather suddenly.

today
okay, before i work myself into some sort of depressive frenzy about how short life is, and OH MY GOD TIME IS SLIPPING BY LIKE SAND THROUGH MY FINGERS!!!, let’s take a step back. after all, it’s sunday and i have nearly the whole day ahead of me.

it’s time for all the usual weekend rituals, from laundry-folding to whole foods and beyond. the most fun part will be finalizing all of the details for our vacation next week. i can’t even express how much i enjoy just having time to catch up and do these regular things! weekends are amazing.

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9.19.09

workout: 10.5 miles in duke forest, as detailed above

doin’ time at akai hana: restaurant review

there were a lot of mixed reviews to be found online for akai hana in carrboro, and i have to admit, some of them made me nervous. but either the other reviewers were way too harsh, or i just don’t have very discerning taste when it comes to sushi. and to be honest, it might be the latter issue — to me, if it tastes fresh and delicious, then . . . it’s good! i didn’t grow up eating sushi, really, and i don’t particularly care about authenticity.

so i will report — with the above disclaimer regarding my qualifications to judge this cuisine — that i enjoyed akai hana, and would go back. i thought the sushi was on par with shiki or sushi love in durham, and the carrboro location was just as convenient for us, since we live in chapel hill. it was slightly more expensive, but certainly not unreasonable, and despite multiple complaints about this in other reviews, i thought the service was just fine.

this cute logo was all over the restaurant

i chose sauvignon blanc from this wine list

josh, giving me flack for taking pictures of the cuisine rather than of him/me. i explained to him that our smiling faces don’t necessarily add much to a restaurant review, but took this picture anyway! his asahi “japanese” beer was brewed and bottled in molson, canada, but i didn’t hear any complaints.

i always love seaweed salad! this was no exception.

these broiled green mussels with ponzu sauce (josh’s pick) were perhaps the highlight of the meal! soft, flavorful, and with a slightly sweet sauce, i wanted to lick the shell afterwards (i managed to restrain myself, though!).

sushi to share! my favorite was the eel all the way to the right. but honestly, to my untrained sushi palate, ALL of it tasted good.

reading: none, unless you count my in search of happiness book! but i will definitely be getting some work done today.