Monday, September 12, 2011

Happy Monday; Deals and Steals 9/12

Happy Monday!  It’s a sunny morning here in Chicago, yet it was still hard to get out of bed today.  I didn’t realize the forecast was so warm (85F) and I’m wearing a strapless dress with a cardi.  The problem?  I opted for a regular bra; which means I’ll be sweating in my sweater when it’s time to leave work. Oh well.

This weekend was exhausting but low-key at the same time.  Saturday morning I did my longest training run for the marathon, 22 miles!  Immediately within a few blocks of leaving home I regretted wearing a short-sleeve shirt instead of a tanktop, regardless that it was only 61F out.  I also kicked myself when I realized that I forgot my new running water bottle and I also wore the wrong pair of shoes (this is what happens when you start to hoard running shoes; they all start to look alike.  Thus, I grabbed my shoes from last summer which is a pair of shoes; I have had two new pairs since those).  Oh well, it actually didn’t make a different.  I was surprised how strong I felt on this run and how much farther I was able to run before feeling like I needed a walking break.  I also realized that post-water break I need to walk for a minute or two, otherwise my stomach feels like crap.

I surprised myself by shedding time off my pace compared to my 18.5 mile run.  My 22-miler pace was 10.6 mile/min compared to 11.4 mile/min for the 18.5.  Not too shabby!

We had some friends come in town for a local art fair, Renegade Craft Fair.  We actually had never heard of it until our friends mentioned it, but holy cow was it huge!!  Despite being extremely wore out from my run, I was really happy I decided to tag along instead of lounging on the couch.  Not only did I see numerous vendors with items I liked, I also walked a ton which helped get all of the lactic acid from my run out of my legs and surprisingly, I wasn’t nearly as sore after my last long run.  I picked up several business cards of tents I liked.  I’ll have to update this post with their links.

After the show, we went to Revolution Brewery for dinner/drinks.  Since H and his buddy about both into brewing, this seemed like the best option.  Plus, they have delicious food (this is where H and I first decided we like fish and chips); including the appetizer of bacon-fat popcorn.  Try it.  You’ll love it. (Although it’s no surprise to my family; I literally used to eat the chunks of fat from the bacon grease when I was a kid).

Sunday my parents stopped through town on their way north so we grabbed brunch . I watched a bit of the Bears game with H and then I did grocery shopping.  I have to confess, while I am a Bears fan, I’m not all that hardcore by any means.  I have to say, one of my favorite things about Bears games is that it is the absolute best time to go grocery shopping/do errands.  Target and Jewel were practically empty compared to their usual Sunday buzz.  I also finally remembered to stop at Home Depot for some mums for the planters I bought at Crate and Barrel outlet a month ago.  I’ll have to post a pic of our "beautified" deck.

Now on to the deals:
·    Borders: Sadly Borders is on its final week of operations;  I received an email that everything is up to 90% off.  (However, H went to our local store late last week and said there was virtually nothing left)
·    Michaels: 50% off regular priced item, 9/11-9/17
o   Plus they’re having a huge sale this wk including: 6 sheets for $1 of scrapbook paper, 50% off floral stems and frames, etc
·    Restaurant.com: 80% off; get $25 gift certificates for only $2 with code: SAVE
·    Shutterfly: 8x8 hardcover photobook $15 (originally $30) or 8x11 hardcover photobook $20 (originally $35) with code: PHOTOBOOKDEAL through 9/14
·    Victoria’s Secret: $15 off a $100 order with code: FALL11

Update: Anthro has 25% off full-priced sweaters through 9/18! Look here

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