Thursday Thoughts

I attended the "Yelp Helps Gala For Good" at The Society Room in Downtown Hartford last night.  It was all about giving back, volunteering at local Hartford groups, and learning about great things Hartford has to offer.  One of the booths was the Hartford Marathon Foundation.  I think I scared the girl working the booth with my enthusiasm and excitement about the Hartford Half.  Regardless, seeing the booth made me want to research the HMF a little bit more.  They're a really cool group that's been around for a while, and they have donated over $5 million to different Hartford area charities.  The HMF offers a variety of training programs, for running, triathlons, and/or swimming and cycling.  They've also got a neat blog that features different types of interviews, events, race recaps, tips, etc. It is a great organization, and I'm thinking about volunteering once in a while for some of their events!  I'm very excited about running in these HMF races:

• Red Dress Run for Women, Saturday, July 12, Elizabeth Park, West Hartford
• Riverfront Scramble #3, Thursday, August 21, Hartford Riverfront, Hartford
• Old Wethersfield 5k & 10k, Sunday, August 24, Old Wethersfield
• NU Hartford Marathon, Saturday, October 11, Hartford

I'm finding that running is exposing me to a lot of things in Hartford.  For example- the Riverfront Scramble series is a series of 5k's throughout the summer, along the Hartford Riverfront, which I barely knew existed.  They have paths and trails near the water in both Hartford and East Hartford.  It's cool to discover new things in a city that I've lived in for 12 years!  It's really making me love this area even more than I already did!

I carried my phone with me for the first time possibly ever on a run on Wednesday.  I was running in the South End of Hartford, and I just felt nervous for some reason, so I took it with me.  I found it quite annoying, actually, because it's big and bulky and I don't like carrying anything in my hand.  It was nice to see my splits though, and the MapMyRun app connects to my iTunes, so I can choose songs for whatever pace I'm running.  I also stopped to take a photo on my run (see below).  I'll probably not carry my phone with me again, any time soon.

Here is a recap of my week in photos:

I stared at these 2 pillows for 30 minutes before finally deciding on the left pillow.

Had this awesome salad on Wednesday... a crab cake on top!

New socks! They're thick, plush, and awesome colored, just how I like them!

I ran across a bridge and had to pause to take a photo. 

Rachael and I at the Yelp Helps Gala For Good! Raisin' the roof

My MapyMyRun summary from Wednesday's run!

That's all for today! 

What's on your weekend agenda?

What is the race you're most excited about running?

What do you like most about where you live? Do you find that you're constantly learning new things about your city?