Ummm. Wow.

Okay, so, on Tuesday I got this really nice email from something called the Salty Running Blog. The email said that my blog would be competing in this NCAA tournament style competition to decide who the GREATEST WOMEN'S RUNNING BLOG is. I was like... wow, okay, that's cool. But, there is no fucking way that I am the best women's running blog, so I kind of left it alone.

Then Wednesday, my curiosity got the best of me and I decided to check out the tournament. Turns out I am a 7 seed against a 2 seed. I checked out my competition and I was like... wow... this bitch has her shit together. I voted for myself (because... uhhh... I didn't want to lose with 0 votes) and went on about my day.

I wish I was this adorable while working.

Shiba Inu for the win.

To be honest, I was flattered that I was in the tournament and I had NO idea how they found out about my little bitchy blog. But, I'm not really the GO OUT AND VOTE FOR ME campaign type person, so, I just assumed that I'd lose in the first round. I realize that the idea is I'm supposed to announce on my blog that I'm in this tournament and that I'm supposed to ask all 6 of you fair readers to go out and vote for me! But... you know me... I'm not going to do that.

And I wasn't even going to mention the darn thing, until I read the post on Meredith's blog that SHE is the one that nominated me!!!!!! And. Wow. I don't give a rat's ass about winning a tournament (let's be honest here... Greatest Women's Running Blog? Yeah, that's not me), but I was genuinely touched and amazed that she took the time to actually nominate me AND then write a post on her own blog about it.

WARNING: BLOGGER LOVE AHEAD!

The thing is... Meredith has always been one of my favorite bloggers. She's fast, she's honest (this is fucking huge to me, I hate those sugarcoaty blogs), and she's real. She's a mom and a wife and a runner and has a job. Like... that's legit, folks.

You ever get that feeling that someone is following you?

Yeah, I promise, that's not me.

Anyway... thanks Meredith! Hopefully at some point we'll get a chance to meet again when we're not all awkward. (For the record, I immediately went back and found April and was like.... GUESS WHO I JUST MET??? OMG! And then we geeked out for like 10 minutes about it. Oh and Dave, too! I was psyched to meet Dave. But, yeah, mostly, Meredith).

And, in an effort to pay it forward... check out her blog AND all the blogs I have listed in my blogroll

-------->>>>>>>>>>>>>>

 These are all people I respect and enjoy reading their blogs!!

PDX Love

Clearly, Portland, Oregon is heaven on earth:

DUDE, I TOOK THIS PICTURE. THIS IS NOT A POSTCARD.

 I know, I can't believe it, either. We hiked out to this lake.. Mirror Lake... Gorgeous.

Mt. Hood is amazing.

My trip over the weekend was just amazing. More than I even anticipated.

Columbia River Gorge. 

I hiked a total of 10ish miles...

Umm.. yeah, so we have waterfalls, too.. but not waterfalls you can WALK BEHIND. When Steph mentioned something about being able to walk behind the falls, I was like... you've got to be shitting me? I've only done that at Opryland Hotel! Holy Shit!

Walking behind the falls... BOO-YA, bitches!

Yes, Mirror Lake again. Obviously, Oregon is God's favorite State.

A 5 mile hike on the coast? Umm.. yes, please!

The fog started rolling in, just as we reached the end of the trail...

 5 minutes later? Foggy as hell.

See... I told you... the hike was on the coast. Not on the beach. Glorious.

We checked out Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood. Where the outside shots of The Shining were filmed. (which neither of us had seen. Scary Movie=Not Interested).

 Inside Timberline Lodge

From the back deck of the Timberline Lodge.

I ran a total of 20 miles, including an 11 miler that involved running 3 miles to LAUREN's* hotel downtown (yay!!!), 5 miles with her and then another 3 miles back to my friends house. It was awesome meeting her and catching up in real life. She is just as funny, sweet, and cute in person as she is on her blog. Thanks for helping me get in a good longish run on vacation, Lauren!

Yay! New BFFs! Ummm... right?

We ate some amazing food... Places like Produce Row Cafe, Full Sail Brewery,  Lucca (oh my god their pizzas!), and VooDoo Doughnuts...

Umm.. So, yeah... those aren't the only doughnuts consumed. Hey, we shared!

One of my favorite things was the FREE Rose Garden and Test Rose Garden.



Obviously... if there's a tour. I'm there. This tour guide was awesome.

Acres and acres of roses.

There was also lots of catching up, TONS of laughs (I haven't laughed that much in ages), meeting new friends, shopping, some amazing desserts from Petunia's at the Farmer's Market, Cookouts, and just a general sense of feeling at home even though I was thousands of miles away.

Most importantly, was the time was spent with one of my best friends... Heed this, folks... when you're best friend lives close to you.. SEE THEM, HUG THEM, SPEND TIME WITH THEM, SHOP WITH THEM, SHARE DESSERTS WITH THEM,  AND LAUGH WITH THEM as much as you can, because you never know when they are going to leave your sorry ass in Middle Tennessee for the glorious lands of Oregon. (Of course, bonus for you... instant excuse to go to Oregon!).

This weekend's adventure... Athens, GA. Pray for the Cocks**.

*I swear, I know what "failed muffins" refers to... but I always think of it as a euphemism for something really dirty. (I'm sure that doesn't surprise most of you).

** When I first typed this, I thought... that's gotta be the first time I've ever said that phrase... but on second thought.. I doubt it.