Spring Race Schedule

It's funny how races tend to accumulate. I clearly remember thinking, sometime in November, that after the Kiawah Marathon, I wouldn't have anything to train for. I had absolutely nothing on tap for 2012, and had no idea what my spring race calendar would look like.

Fast forward a couple months. I'm now planning on (and registered for!) three half marathons in three months, and possibly a full in June as well.

Crazy? Yeah, probably, but this is the way I see it: next year, when I start medical school, my life will most likely revolve around studying, sleeping, and eating. While I'll definitely stay active, I have a feeling it will be more like let's-run-a-5k active than let's-run-a-marathon active. Thus, I my as well do heaps of long distance running now, while I have time and energy on my side. (At the very least, this is what I tell myself to justify race entry fees...)

But anyway! Spring race schedule! Let's go!

1. Disney Princess Half Marathon
This has been on my "running bucket list" (yes, I have a running bucket list...) for years now. All women run? Through Disney World? In tutus? Sign me up! When my amazing friend Suzanne mentioned she was doing this race, it took all of 2.4 seconds for me to decided to do it with her. True, it's a bit pricey, and true, it's a bit of a logistical nightmare, but....it's Disney! So, so, so excited.

2. DC Rock n' Roll Half Marathon
While Disney is going to be a fun/silly/fantabulous run, DC is going to be my chance to give it all I've got. I'm thinking sub-1:50....but we shall see.

3. Kentucky Derby Half Marathon
My dad's run this several times and only has good things to say. This time, when he mentioned he was signing up to run it again, I decided to join him. The last time my dad and I ran together, I walked away with a shiny new PR, so I'm hoping this race will bring on some faster times as well :)

4. Undetermined June Marathon
I still haven't signed up for a June Marathon, so I'm not 100% sold on this. To be honest, the Kiawah Marathon left me tired, sore, and a bit burnt out. I love running, but I'm not sure I have it in me-- physically or mentally-- to take on another 26.2 just yet.

Of course, if I am going to run another Marathon, I should probably do it now, before starting med school, so we shall see!

Race Report: Kiawah Island Marathon

The highlights:

• Marathon number TWO! 26.2 is always an accomplishment in my book.
  
  
• PR and goal (almost) met. Going into the race, I was little unsure of what to expect. My first marathon left me with a stress fracture, a lot of tears, and a time that started with a "6", so I didn't exactly have an obvious goal.
  
  After a bit of thought, I decided my goals were 1) 4:30:00 and 2) finishing with a smile. While I didn't exactly make goal number one (five seconds! seriously?!), goal number two was a definitely success! 

aren't space blankets attractive? me + b post-race. 

• Racing with people I love. Although I love running in all conditions, sharing races with friends is pretty spectacular. 

me, amy, maggie. these girls are incredible. 

me + b, tired and happy. 

• Perfect weather. 55 degrees. Overcast. Slight sea breeze. YES.
  
• Fuel Success! Lately, I've been having a lot of stomach issues while running. I don't do well with Gu, Sports Jelly Beans feel like pebbles in my tummy, and I've never been able to properly digest "real" food while running. Unfortunately, I also can't make it longer than 16 miles without consuming some sort of calories, and knew that I needed a decent fueling strategy come race day.
  
  The night before the marathon, I broke a golden rule of racing and bought a pack of Shot Blocks for the first time. I had absolutely no idea how my body would react to them, but I (a bit recklessly) decided to run with them anyway.
  
  They. Are. Amazing. Perfect fuel, easy to digest, no stomach problems, and they even taste good. Success!
  
• I have fast friends. My friends are amazing. Out of or lovely group, Ben and Maggie came in at 3:32, Amy finished around 3:20, and my childhood friend Patrick came in fourth overall at 2:29 (!!!!!!). Although it's always fun to cheer on friends, it's even better when they're superstar athletes!

amazing friends. 

• Mile 25. There is nothing like reaching mile 25 in a marathon, only to see your dad and boyfriend (who, I might add, just finished the half and full marathon, respectively), there waiting for you, ready to run with you for that last tough mile.
  
  Although Dad and Ben both ducked out right before the last 0.2, their encouragement definitely helped me to kick it in and chase down the finish line. 

finish line sprint! 

The not-so-highlights: 

• I wasn't crazy about the course. Between the island location and fantastic reviews, I had pretty high expectations. I also think my bar was already set ridiculously high-- my first marathon was in Florence, Italy. From glancing at the course map, I was fairly certain the course wound through marshes, a few residential areas, and had a few nice long stretches along the Atlantic.
  
  This was not true. Although there were a few marshes (and even a "Caution: Alligators" sign!) the course was almost entirely residential. Instead of running by the beach, we ran by houses facing (and blocking) the beach.
  
  The course was also two repeats of a 13 mile loop-- essentially, the half-marathoners did the loop once, and the full runners did it twice. While there are definitely benefits to knowing what's coming next, I still found myself a little bored in the second half.
  
•  The mind for a marathon.  I'll be blunt-- I got bored.
  
  The first half was amazing. There were lots of supporters, I was surrounded by scads of runners, and I was constantly excited to see what was coming next (and to see if I could spot an alligator. That would be so cool!)
  
  When I saw my half split (2:04:xx), I know I probably went out to strong, but I also didn't really care-- I felt great!
  
  The second half, however? Not so much. As soon as I rounded the 13 mile mark, the happy group of runners beside veered toward the half marathon finish line, and I found myself suddenly alone. I knew exactly what to expect of the course, and the race day thrill started to ebb away. I even started listening to music, something which, although entertaining, always slows me down.
  
  To be honest, the second half didn't really feel like race at all. It felt like another long training run, another set of miles to log, and another loop to push myself through. It wasn't until I hit mile 25 (and saw my dad and Ben!) that it fully hit me: Holy Moly! I'm about to finish a marathon! Although it was nice how smoothly the miles flowed, I did miss the "marathon mindset"-- and the adrenaline and speed that accompany it! 

Nevertheless, overall, it was an amazing day. Yes, I lost steam towards the end. Yes, I probably good have trained a lot smarter. And yes, there were about a million times during the final few miles when I told myself I would never, ever do this again.

But you know what? For all the times I felt like simply giving in, there were countless more when I realized just how much I honestly love running.

I loved the sound of my feet hitting the pavement.

I loved running where I could smell the sea.

And I loved, loved, loved the moment of finally seeing the finish line. I did it!

out incredible group-- what a wonderful weekend!

What are knees, again?

Four days after the 2011 Kiawah Marathon and I'm still struggling with stairs.

Full recap to come, but for now, a fairly accurate representation of what life is like the day after a marathon. Especially the lady with the socks. That was totally me. 

Marathon Eve Eve

The day after tomorrow, I'm running a marathon.

I cannot believe I just typed that. A marathon! Me! In less than 48 hours!

Even thought this is marathon number 2, I by no means feel like a marathon veteran. My first marathon was a long, grueling challenge. I was under-trained,  under-motivated, and honestly only crossed the finish line because I didn't think I'd ever find my friends again if I didn't. It was a disaster, and I promised myself I'd never put myself through that sort of torture again. I'd stick to half marathons-- 13.1 miles of long-distance bliss-- and save full marathons for the truly crazy.

with ben, in 2008, post marathon. that's
most definitely a fake smile.

Yet here I am. About to set off for Kiawah Island, South Carolina, and about to give 26.2 a second chance.

About a zillion thoughts are rushing through my head right now:

Did I put in enough miles? What about that long run I missed? Was my training enough?

What pace should I strive for? Is 9:30 too ambitious? Those crazy race calculators say I can finish in 4:10:39. That seems nuts!

I really want to run in shorts and a dry-fit tee. Am I going to freeze? If I wear leggings, will I swelter? Is it bad a purchase a super-cheap sweatshirt at a thrift store with the sole purpose of chucking it a few miles into the race, when I start to heat up?

I hope it doesn't rain!

My current fueling plan is bagel + nutella + gatorade for breakfast, and a Balance bar to munch on during the race. I hope that's enough. I've had a lot of stomach issues during running lately, and I'm worried my stomach's going to flare up again.

Music? No music? Watch? No Watch?

I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M RUNNING A MARATHON!

I feel nervous, excited, anxious, hyper, hydrated, and, yes, a little bit scared. But no matter what, I'm determined to have fun, soak it all in, and remember why I love running so much in the first place. And cross the finish line. That too.

Race Recap: Ramblin' Rose Half Marathon

I promise I'll eventually stop rehashing past events and get to my life now, but there's one event that I simply had to talk about: The Duke Medicine Ramblin' Rose Women's Half Marathon (quite a mouthful, eh?), back in mid-October.

There were a lot of reasons that originally prompted me to sign up for this race:

One, it happened on the exact Saturday marked "Half Marathon" of my Hal Higdon's full marathon training plan. That's pretty cool.

Two, it was a women-only race. Although it's always fun to pass guys, it's also really neat to see 3,000 women, many clad in pink, busting out 13.1 miles.

that's a lot of pink!

Finally, the the race started all of 6 miles from my front door. Literally. There was no travel, no getting lost, no crazy-early wake up time-- I simple rolled out of bed, drove about ten minutes, and lined up to run. Brilliant.

To be honest, I crossed the start line without any real expectations. For the majority of marathon training, I had been focused far more on milage than speed, and I didn't really know what my legs were up for. Besides, I had made my sub-2 hour-half goal back in May, and I wan't really sure what to set next: 1:55? Less?

As a result, I ran the first 6 miles without much thought. The course began through downtown Durham and weaved around Duke's East Campus-- places I literally run through nearly every day-- and was honestly a bit boring.  I had run by these houses and down these streets more times than I can count, so the course itself held little charm. I even started listening to music, something I never do during a race (for some reason, listening to music tends to make me slower. Craziness.).

easy running (with horrible form! total t-rex arms!)

When I reached the 10k mark, I was shocked that my time-- 54 minutes-- was actually pretty good. Hey! I thought. If I push it a bit, I can totally PR! 

Then came the hills. Lots and lots and lots of hills.

Although the first half of the course was super-familiar, the second half ventured along roads I had never run on before, and for good reason: they were ridiculously hilly. There were some nice downhills, but for the most part, it was long, steep, grueling climbs. I try to get in a few hills every week, but my legs weren't nearly prepared for this. More than once, I wondered if walking up the very steepest climbs would be any faster. Despite thinking PR! PR!, I knew that I simply had to slow down.

On the bright side, the second half did have fantastic spectators and volunteers. All sorts of people-- other women, families, small kids-- were out in their yards, holding signs and cheering the runners on. Someone had even written inspirational messages in sidewalk chalk on the very steepest hills. Seeing "You're almost at the top!" beneath your feet definitely makes hills a little more bearable :)

crazy flapping ponytail action. 

Near the end of the race, I realized that if I dug deep and pushed, I could still break 2 hours-- not exactly a PR, but still a nice goal. Unfortunately, the race ended on a-- guess what?-- uphill, and despite giving it all I had, I was still a few seconds too slow. Le sigh.

finish line sprint. unfortunately not quite sprinty enough!

Despite feeling meh about my time, it was still a fantastic race. It was well organized, had wonderful supporters, and was a pretty intense hill workout to boot :) I'd definitely run it again.

post-race meet-up with some of my favorite 2010 dukies. good friends,
pink medals, and a wonderful post-race brunch can make even a "meh"
time seem not too shabby :)

Weekending

I love weekends. Love, love, love.

Lately, however, I feel like I haven't had a true weekend-- either I'm travelling for interviews (fun, but exhausting), or catching up on the work I missed/will miss because of interviews (not so exhausting, but considerably less fun.)

At any rate, this past weekend was true, beautiful weekend, and I loved it.

Like all good weekends, it started on Thursday night-- a trip Sugarland with Maddie and Lauren. We ended up skipping the famous frozen martinis (of Food Network fame!) and instead settled for coffee, gelato, and hours of good conversation. Amazing.

Saturday, I tackled my longest run since 2008-- 16 ginormous miles. I'll be honest-- it was hard. Really, really, surprisingly hard. For whatever reason, my running brain simply wasn't "on." Just six miles in, I started to get hot, antsy, and simply tired of running. I still got the miles in, but certainly never had the amazing, I-love-running! sort of feeling. It was a little disconcerting, seeing as I have a half next weekend, but I'm just pegging it as a bad-run fluke.

At any rate, Saturday's horrible run was completely redeemed on Sunday.

Why? Because I spent the majority of yesterday hiking through this:

And meandering by this:

And soaking in views like this:

All the while enjoying fantastic conversation with my lovely friend Hannah.

It had been a year and a half since Hannah and I had seen each other, and despite post cards and Skype Dates, it was absolutely amazing to catch up in person. Hanging Rock State Park is one of my favorite little nooks in North Carolina, and the fall foliage and crisp air were simply perfect.

While 16 mile run on Saturday + 6 mile hike on Sunday = sad, sad knees, it was totally, without question, worth it. 

Fall Race Calendar

It's the most wonderful time of the year....


I love fall. Absolutely adore it. I love the colorful foliage, the crisp air, the pumpkin-flavored everything, the cozy sweaters, the impending holidays...everything. While I loved spending last year in Switzerland, I'll be honest-- one of the things I missed the most was the beautiful, east-coast fall.

blue ridge parkway.
(I didn't take this photo)

Another nice aspect to fall? It's the start of my race season! As much as I love running, I'm definitely a fair-weather racer. I don't like excessive heat (> 85F), I don't like excessive cold (< 40 F), and I don't really like precipitation. In Switzerland, this works out perfectly. Aside from a rather snowy December and January, the majority of my Swiss afternoons were cool, crisp, and perfect for a run.

Unfortunately, Durham's weather isn't quite so cooperative. Summer is hot. Very, very hot. Although I still kept my miles up, even a short run could leave me dizzy, dehydrated, and positively exhausted. Races were definitely out of the question.

However! Dear Durham has finally cooled off, my favorite season is in full swing, and I've decided it's high time to bring back one of my favorite aspects of running: Races!


Here's what's on the calendar thus far:

1. Ramblin' Rose Half Marathon (10/6/11)

What I'm looking forward to:

• All women's race! Although it's always fun to pass guys, I've always thought a girls-only race would be fun. Bring on the pink!
• My amazing friend Maggie! We ran our first Marathon together (2008 Firenze) and I'm so excited to be running a race with her again.
• Home court advantage. Although the course is decently hilly, it winds through Duke's campus and downtown Durham-- where I run nearly every evening!
• The race benefits Duke Hospital Cancer Fund. I've really come to admire the research at Duke, and I'm excited to contribute to it.
  

2. City of Oaks Half Marathon (11/6/11)

I'm actually not completely sold on this race.

The course skirts around Raleigh, and the fall foliage and weather should be gorgeous, however, it's also a) a bit pricey, b) awfully close to Kiawah and c) a race I might end up doing alone. I had originally been planning on running this with my dad, but he tore his hamstring a while back, and might not be up for it. If I do end up running this, I have a feeling it will be a last-minute registration.



3. Kiawah Marathon (12/10/11)

First of all: I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS!

I haven't done a full marathon since fall 2008, and after a bit of a distance-running break, I'm ready to tackle another.

I'll probably do a longer post later on exactly why I chose this race and what sort of goals I have in mind, but for now: this is easily the most exciting race on my calendar. Woohoo Kiawah!

Race Report: Geneve Half Marathon

The Geneva Half Marathon was, in a phrase, a race of contradictions.

The good parts...

• PR! To be honest, despite announcing my goal to break two hours, at the start of the race, I had no idea whether I actually would. I spent the day before the race eating ice cream and going for a twenty mile bike ride-- not exactly a recipe for fresh legs and happy stomach. Nevertheless, when the gun went off, my legs felt light and strong. The weather was perfect, the crowds were lively, and I couldn't stop smiling. When I crossed the finish line and double-checked my time, I was elated. Although I always knew that I physically could break two hours if I pushed myself and trained correctly, actually doing it and achieving my goal was an awesome, awesome feeling. Total runner's high :)  (Ben also PR'd with the awesome time of 1:48! Time-wise, it was a fantastic race!)
  

• Gravity-driven first half. Like always, I started this half consistently reminding myself not to start out too fast-- however, in this case, it was kind of hard not to! Although there were some gently rolling hills, there was also a lot of downhill. While downhills can certainly be hard on your knees, I personally love them-- I'm all about letting gravity do some of the work for me!
  
  
• Gorgeous, varied, interesting course. Vineyards. Fields of poppies. Small villages. Downtown Geneva. Lac Leman. Whoever chose the course did a fantastic job keeping things interesting and showcasing Geneva's unique culture.
  
  
• Ponchos! About two minutes after I crossed the finished line, the skies opened up and it started to rain. Hard. It took me all of ten seconds to go from feeling hot and sweaty to drenched and shivering-- not exactly a great post-race feeling! Fortunately, the race organizers were totally on top of their game and started quickly passing out ponchos-- a brilliant bit of planning on their part.
  
  
• My name was on my number. This might actually be my favorite part of the race. Throughout the entire course, spectators kept calling out "Allez Vanessa!", "Bravo Vanessa!", and "Vanessa! C'est bon!" Every time I heard a spectator cheering my name, my face erupted into a smile and I kicked up my game. Amazing.  Why don't all races do this?!
  
  

...and the not-so-good parts.

• No shirt, no medal. I'll be honest: I run races because I love running. I love the new courses, the excitement, the camaraderie, the cheering fans. However: I also really like race expos, snazzy race t-shirts, and feeling like a medal-clad Olympian while cooling off post-race. While the volunteers at the race expo were friendly and helpful, the expo itself was small and only had a couple of booths. The race packet contained simply a chip, number, and a couple of flyers, and finish-line crossers were greeted with "Good Jobs!" rather than medals. While race goodies are far from being the most important part of a race, given the number of runners, the hefty registration fee, and the overall race hype, I was expecting to walk away with a snazzy souvenir.
  
  
• Low on water. Unlike a lot of runners, I'm not really a big water drinker. I usually drink a couple of glasses the morning of a race, a glass right before, and a couple of glasses during (maybe more, if it's really hot out.) But this race? It didn't even provide that! While there was water at the starting line, you had to pay 2 CHF for it--what runner brings spare change along for a race? The water along the course wasn't much better, either-- there were only three water stops, the cups were super small, and the lines to get water were fairly long. By the time I crossed the finish line, I was definitely dehydrated and wanted nothing more than to guzzle an enormous bottle of water.
  
  
• A little crowded. After the insanity that was the Lisbon Half Marathon (I was running through a parade. Seriously.), I almost feel like this doesn't really warrant a complaint. But....the race was pretty crowded. There were always lines for water stops and some of the narrow lanes and bridges had some pretty bad bottlenecks. For the most part, I don't think the crowds slowed my pace down that much, but it was kind of annoying.
  
  
• Horribly unorganized finish. This is probably my biggest complaint of the race. At the race's finish, there were several tents set up with water bottles, fruit, and cake (and later, ponchos.) However-- before you could get to the water and food tents, you had to pass through an enormous bottleneck. Ben, my dad and I waited a good fifteen minutes to get out of the bottleneck-- all the while feeling tired, thirsty, and getting steadily wetter as the rain started to pick up. Although I loved the top-of-the-world feeling that came with crossing the finish line, it was a bit dampened by the poor organization and planning. 

But enough with words! Pictures!

ice cream cones may not be the healthiest race eve snack, but they were
definitely delicious!

leaving st-sulpice the morning of the race. thanks to a 10:30 am start, we
didn't have to get up before the sun!

me + b, waiting for the train. we weren't sure whether or not we'd be running
in the rain, so we both brought along our snazzy jackets from the 2008
florence marathon. 

mom took a few photos while waiting for us to finish-- this is the road
along the last 100 meters of the course.

eau de geneve! 

the finish line! always a wonderful sight :)

about 50 meters from the finish line (and a new PR!)

post-race photo shoot: check out those ponchos!

me and daddy

the runners! ben, me, dad. 

post-race lunch- exhausted and hungry!

Easter Weekend: Bicycles, Basil, and Productivity

My Easter weekend was unusual, to say the least. There was no egg-dying, no jelly bean eating, and no visit from the Easter Bunny. More importantly, there was no Sunday morning church*, no Easter Dinner at my Grandma's, and no time spent with my wonderful family.

There was also no weekend trip, a bit of a departure from my past several weekends. Although a group of my friends headed south to Lugano, a charming town near the Swiss-Italian border, I opted to pass.

So what did I do this weekend?

 Read. Eat. Run. Analyze Data. Catch up on my massive to-do list. The next few weeks are going to be absolutely nuts (we've got visitors for about three weeks straight), and as boring as it may sound, I really just needed a weekend to catch up (and maybe even get ahead?) on life. I really do love being on the go-go-go, but sometimes I think we all need to stop, breathe, and recharge our batteries.

Some highlights from my (relaxing, recharging, rejuvenating) Easter weekend: 

• Perhaps the most dramatic happening: I was run over by a bicycle! In Lausanne, we have these things I've nicknamed "bug clouds." While running, every thirty feet or so, I'll come across a dense swarm of bugs. The swarms are about ten square feet, three feet off the ground, and often difficult to see until you're practically inside them. If you're not careful, you'll end up with bugs in your ears, bugs in you eyes, and a lovely painting of bugs splattered across your shirt.
  
   I've gotten decently good at avoiding the obstacles, but the kid biking on the other side of the running path clearly had not. He hit a bug cloud, sharply turned, and barreled into me with full speed, leaving my legs and arms a scraped and bloody mess. Fortunately, I wasn't actually injured (the Geneva Half Marathon is definitely still happening) but it certainly didn't make for a happy run.
  
  
• On Saturday, Ben and I took a lovely stroll by the lake. I got two scoops of my favorite ice cream, we listened to a couple songs by an outdoor band, and even spotted some local wild life! 

what, you didn't know camels and zebras are native to switzerland?
my best guess was some sort of circus, but I really have no idea
why these guys were hanging out in the parking lot by ouchy.

along with the camels and zebras: a cage of doves.

there was some sort of charity event going on on saturday-- for 1 CHF, you
could purchase a dyed egg to place in the egg mosaic. the proceeds went
to a local charity supporting the families of children with chronic illnesses. 

ben and I each bought a yellow egg. 

ben: take a picture of me by the flower clock. 

vanessa: that picture was boring. do something exciting, like....act like a
clock.... (I am so strange. I still can't figure out why he humors me...)

• We've been talking about it for a while, but Ben and I finally got our own little baby basil plants! I love fresh basil, and am already dreaming of fantastic summer pesto. 

re-potting the baby basil plants!

so excited for fresh basil! I added a little to my favorite tomato soup
on saturday, and it was fantastic!

our new baby basil plants, aka, pesto 1 and pesto 2 :)

• The weather's been fantastic lately. I'm a total warm-weather person (cold weather is only good for skiing and Christmas) and have been happily putting aside my sweaters and pulling out the flip-flops.

the only downside to the ever-warming weather? the lovely tulips
are starting to die :(

*I did, however, go to a lovely Good Friday service on Friday evening. The music was beautiful, even if I couldn't understand a bit of the French.  

Scatter Post

The past few days, I've been in total scatter brain mode. My mind keeps darting from one project to another, and it's honestly left me in a bit of a (happy, excited, exhausted) jumble.

Here's what's been on my crazy-scatted mind:

• Running.  How could it not, given that my friend Amy ran the Annecy Marathon on Sunday and the stellar performance in Boston on Monday? Lately, I've been in a total running groove and to be honest, it's been fantastic. I'm super excited for the Geneva Half Marathon and to add some more races to my schedule.

finally warm enough to run in shorts :)

• Research. Is. Exploding. In what felt like a millisecond, I went from feeling like I had no data whatsoever to being up to my ears in numbers, graphs, and images. On the one hand, it's crazy-awesome-exciting to realize that my hours upon hours in lab are really starting to come together. On the other, it's sort of hard to stay afloat. What can I say? When it rains, it pours

lots and lots and lots of microscoping...

• The Mega-Veggie Scramble.  I'm not coordinated enough to make an omelette, but I love mixing massive amounts of veggies into ordinary scrambled eggs. Add in a little garlic and some gruyere cheese and voila! Delicious dinner in ten minutes. Fantastic. 

colorful, protein-packed perfection. 

• Spring.  It's here, folks. In full, beautiful force. Love it, love it, love it

love spring flowers :)

• Switzerland. Two months. Two months! Two months until I bid farewell to this amazing, amazing country and head back to the wonderful U S of A. It seems like just yesterday I was getting off the plane, fresh-faced and exciting, searching for an apartment and trying to remember everyone's name in lab. While part of me is definitely excited to return home-- I definitely miss my family, friends, and Mexican food-- I'm also not quite sure I'm ready to leave. What can I say? I'm in love with this place. 

the gorgeous gruyere region. full disclosure: my amazing friend daniella
took this photo, not me. 

• Blogging. I've always enjoyed this little blog, but lately it's been extra fun. I've been thinking about some design and layout changes and I'm super excited...stay tuned!