Friday Things

I think I'm one of very few people who never watched the Sopranos, but James Gandolfini's death still hit me pretty hard.  I can't help but think of my dad when something like this happens; he was even ten years younger than Gandolfini when he died.  

last Halloween together 1980

I'm only one year younger than my dad was when he died, and my son is one year younger than I was; it's so surreal, and unimaginable to me that my kids would lose me or my husband right now.  My heart aches for James Gandolfini's loved ones and, I have no idea about his family history or lifestyle, but it's a good reminder to all that we take care of our tickers.  I've said it all before (in the post linked above, after all the race recap stuff) that heart disease is the leading cause of death for men AND women, more than cancer.  Not that I don't have my own beef with cancer, I do; but, it seems that people aren't as aware of the dangers of heart disease.   

OK, off my soapbox and on to more upbeat Friday things!  Sports! First off, if you have no idea about what's going on in between Olympic cycles in the world of Track and Field (which, admittedly, I do not) this guest post from Sarah at Once Upon a Lime over at the Oiselle blog is a great introduction to what's going on in the world of professional running while the USA Outdoor T&F Championships are happenin' this weekend.  Tonight, I'm psyched to see not just one, but TWO amazing athletes that I've had the pleasure of running with (!) teammate Kate Grace and superstar Alysia Montano in the women's 800m semi-final.  

I'm also super psyched for Mother Runner Dimity who I met exactly a year ago - she is gonna become an Ironman Ironmother on Sunday in Coeur D'Alene.  Go Dimity GO!

And of course, also happenin' this weekend...

HAWKS! And, no, not Seahawks.  I know a lot of folks don't get into hockey, and I must profess that I don't pay attention to the games during the regular season anymore.  But, this has be a helluva showdown between the Blackhawks and the Bruins: three out of four games into OT, one of them a triple OT.  Hockey is just such an adrenaline pumping sport with constant movement and shots on the goal.  I remember going to my first games with my big brother and his buddies when we were in our early 20s and drank Mickeys malt liquor in the parking lot beforehand.  Classy.  We even made it to one playoff game back in the day.  After awhile, a group of my girlfriends made it a yearly tradition of at least one regular season game, followed by a long night out on the town.  Such great memories and I'm pretty pumped to see them goin' for another Stanley Cup.

Speaking of back in the day, I was a HUGE fan of this movie when I was a kid and I about died laughing when I saw this:

Hmmm, it's not streaming on Netflix; perhaps it's worth putting in the DVD queue... 

On to music - I suppose I'm going with a theme of adding artists that I had on last year's playlist to this year's; this time it's Easy  by Porter Robinson (and Matt Zo).

Happy weekend!  If you're running Seattle Rock N Roll Marathon or Half, let me know and I'll keep an eye out for ya - I'll be handing out Nuun over by their offices that are near mile 2/mile 10 on the course!

2013 Playlist
I Could be the One by Avicii featuring Nicky Romero
Pair of Dice by Tiesto
Ain't No Stoppin' by Ferry Corsten (featuring Ben Hague)

Come and Get It by Selena Gomez
Apollo by Hardwell featuring Amba Shepherd

This Head I Hold by Electric Guest

Castles in the Sky by Ian Van Dahl

Feel this Moment by Pitbull, featuring Christina Aguilera

Into Your Arms by the Lemonheads

Just Give me a Reason by Pink

I Love It by Icona Pop

Little Secrets Passion Pit

Sovereign Light Cafe by Keane, remixed by Afrojack

Clarity by Zedd

Years by Alesso

Something Good Can Work by Two Door Cinema Club
She Wolf by David Guetta, featuring Sia
Alive by Krewella
Illmerica by Wolfgang Garnter
Drowning by Armin van Buren
Give Me Your Hand by The Ready Set
Language by Porter Robinson
Cry for You by September
You Are My Diamond by Tiesto - featuring Kianna
Arguru - Deadmau5
We Are by Jus Jack & Oza, featuring Aeone