Nada

Well nothing special happened today but I did get to catch up with a friend who lives in the Palo Alto area and we went to Philz again!!!  I tried a new type of coffee, Julie's Ultimate which was very good but not as incredible as the Jacobs Wonderbar flavor I had last time.  We caught up for a couple hours about life and Relay stuff and then Megan was done working and we headed back for Monterey.  After eating lunch we packed up the car and went to Carmel Beach for the duration of the afternoon.  We brought the dog and the ball gloves and played some catch while watching the sun set.  Overall a very good day but nothing crucial or life-changing occurred.  

8 days...Go Pats!  

Why Palo Alto?

9 months ago I had planned on being in Tampa today to celebrate Gasparilla with a bunch of friends I haven't seen in forever.  Then 4 months ago I stopped drinking so that idea got thrown out the window.So I signed up for a race with some friends in San Juan Bautista and then on New Years I busted up my ankle and haven't run since.  So now I sit in a hotel in Palo Alto, sober and injured but searching for some meaning as to how I ended up here today. 

And what am I doing here you ask?  Megan is working and I came along for the trip.  But for some reason I feel like today will be more than just relaxing in a hotel and hopefully I will be able to figure out what it is.  Or maybe I just watch too many movies and I should just relax in the hot tub!

Bored and Busy

This ankle/foot injury is causing incredible boredom...I cannot run or even swim but I have been going to the gym and I even started lifting weights again.  Lifting weights is surprisingly therapeutic and a great outlet for any frustrations or boredom.  I'm finally going to have to give in and get checked out by a doctor because the pain is not going away and is extremely irritating.  The swelling has been gone for a while but the shooting and throbbing pain is there pretty much each day.  Icing doesn't seem to be working anymore and I need to cut down on the Aspirin and Tylenol so I don't put a hole in my stomach.  I cannot stay off my foot because of my job so I try my best to stay seated on my days off.  Of course after the Patriots won I went on a jumping spree around the apartment.  I'll hopefully be able to make an appointment for this Friday but if not I guess it'll have to wait until next week.  Either way I'll keep you updated.

This weekend we are headed up to Palo Alto because Megan has to work and I'm tagging along for the free hotel stay and for a chance to catch up with one of my Relay friends I met in Anaheim.  AND Philz Coffee (http://www.philzcoffee.com/), where we met up last time and will again this time, is simply AMAZING!  I'm not a coffee snob or anything but I'm at a point where I have my own taste for good coffee; Starbucks = crap, Peet's = Pretty Good but Philz = incredible!  There's a zillion choices to choose from and the customer service is top notch.  If you ever have the chance I highly recommend poking your head in.

Works been busy lately with the inspection last week (which went exceptionally well), new gallery assignments, and new responsibilities.  I got to help with the mola (ocean sunfish) check up this morning and go to get in the water and guide the fish over to the stretcher.  The animal was then lifted out of the water and examined to see if it is fit for release yet.  It still needs to heal up a bit so it probably won't get released for another month or so but it will have to be moved to our offsite holding facility until it is all better.  I went straight from diving in that tank to diving in a much colder tank, the Kelp Forest which is 52 degrees right now.  It was a basic maintenance dive and I just scrubbed and vacuumed but it was nice to get into a tank I haven't been in in almost a year.

I'm also in charge of two new octopi, Wonderpus photogenicus and right now they are being held for research and development for our Cephalopod 2014 temporary exhibit.  We are going to be one of the few aquariums, if not the only to have an entire exhibit based solely on cephalopods.  Right now mom is asking, what the heck is a cephalopod???  Cephalopods are the group of octopus, squid, cuttlefish and nautilus.  They are basically some of the coolest animals on the planet and I'm involved in this project from the very beginning!

Patriots headed back to Super Bowl

This never gets old!

Patriots headed back to Super Bowl

Here We Go Again!

Superbowl 2012!!!

This is the 6th time I am witnessing the New England Patriots go to the Superbowl and the 5th with Mr. Tom Brady, undoubtedly the greatest quarterback of all-time in my book.  Today's game showed a few flaws in Brady's game, having two interceptions and no touchdowns but the defense stepped it up and Vince Wilfork led them to victory.  Joe Flacco played surprisingly well and in contrast Ray Rice did not but of course it all landed in the lap of Billy Cundiff.  And in a game where there was a lot of sloppy play and everyone was looking for the heroic moment, it all ended with a flop.  Any other day he makes that kick but not today, today he missed and the New England Patriots are headed to Superbowl XLVI in Indianapolis.  And I thought for once we could head to Indy without having to deal with a flipping Manning brother but of course I was wrong and the Giants got lucky, were handed their victory as well with sloppy play from the Niners and now we have a rematch.  Only this time it'll end a little differently, or so I hope.

Let's Go Pats!!!  And if anyone wants to lend me $2000 for a ticket I'll be eternally grateful!

Patriots Baby!!!

It's almost time for Patriots playoff football and I couldn't be more excited this year.  I know the defense is nearly atrocious with all the yardage they're putting up each week but if you look at the numbers there actually were teams that gave up more points than the Pats.  There are not too many teams scoring as many points as them though, with Brady throwing for 5235 yards this year averaging over 30 points a game.  The Tebow-mania is getting out of hand and needs to put to a stop.

There are four superbowl winning quarterbacks playing this weekend, one team that's finally back to status, a new playoff team and all anybody on ESPN can talk about is Tim Tebow.  Tim Tebow plays on a team that backed into the playoffs and beat a really good Steelers team with a very beat up, overweight quarterback.  I think it is Belichick/Brady time now and they need to put him in his place.

Pats win 35-13 in a very hostile, cold New England environment.

Go Pats!!!

Happy Friday the 13th!

Today was the first of three Friday the 13ths in 2012 but I didn't encounter any crazy happenings...I also didn't really leave the apartment.  Today was a much needed lazy day as work has been pretty busy lately and my ankle is still bugging me.  We are preparing for a major inspection, getting trained on new galleries, and I even had to give a presentation on my time in Hawaii.

Last night I had my first Relay for Life Team Captain Meeting and I was in charge of the agenda and running the meeting; so of course I was up late Wednesday night prepping for it.  So this afternoon I cleaned up some of my stuff a bit and took it relatively easy.  Tonight I made dinner for my friend Erin (girl who got hit by the car), her husband, and sister.  I made one of my all-time favs American chop suey and a salad and I've gotta say it was pretty darn good.  She's doing pretty well for being hit by a car; having shattered her knee, separated a shoulder, and cracked two ribs.  She got her staples out of her leg and is now just all stitched up but still quite immobile; although she did make a surprise appearance at work yesterday which was great to see.

After dinner and catching up I made my way home and I am now watching Friday the 13th Part VII.  This, in case you aren't up on your Vorhees history is the one where a telekenetic teen Tina revives Jason out of the lake and of course the hockey-masked zombie is quite pissed off.  He was after all chained to a rock and drowned for 4 years by Tommy Jarvis!

[TEASER ALERT]
The death scenes in this movie are quite classic and the sleeping bag scene alone makes this movie worth watching.  Of course it follows the same plot lines of teens hooking up, doing drugs and drinking at Camp Crystal Lake but it's a great movie to watch on Halloween and Friday the 13th and makes up for some of the even crappier ones.  And Jason is a serious badass, pretty quick for a dead guy, and can really put an axe through a blonde girls head and toss her across the room when he has to!  Ugly as hell though as you get to see his decrepit, cross eyed, I could really use a vacation look at the end of the movie just before Tina channels the powers of Carrie and (almost) blows Jason away.  Of course he comes back, throws Tina across the dock where she is then saved by her "also dead" father that she watched die and drown in this same lake as a 10 year old.  Gotta love the powers of telekinesis!!!

Happy Friday the 13th everyone!!!

This is where my dad makes a joke to my mom saying he sees a striking resemblence!

National Championship Game

Is anyone else watching this one-sided football game?  I honestly thought this would have been a shoot-out even with both teams having the top two defenses in college but it's Roll Tide all the way.  Bama has almost 400 yards where LSU hasn't even hit 100 yet and this is the end of the game!  But I guess 5 penalties and 2 turnovers didn't help them at all.  I have no ties to either one of these teams but do enjoy a solid, hard-nosed football game and according to Coach Miles this was supposed to be "big-boy" football but it's looking as if the only men on the field reign from Alabama.

Roll Tide we'll see you at the draft!

Is it Saturday yet?

Pittsburgh: Tee Off Time 9:30AM; 1/9/12

Hey Pittsburgh, you just got Tebowed, get the golf clubs out!  Unfortunately I didn't get to see either game today because I was at work and honestly I could have cared less about either one, but I'm glad to see Pittsburgh on the way out.  The only team I would have been happy with winning today got absolutely destroyed by the Giants; have I ever mentioned how much I hate the Mannings?  I'm not a Denver fan like my geographically confused mother so I would have also been happy with Tebow getting an early start to the offseason but I would much rather have the Patriots play Tebow than the Steelers.

Next week we have the Denver Broncos entering Tom Brady's house, the Cathedral of the New England Patriots.  The last time Denver and their omnipresent quarterback tried to take on Brady's crew they were thoroughly embarrassed (once the Patriots stopped screwing around) and I'm predicting this to happen again.  I don't care how much magic and inspiration Tebow brings to his team, he still needs to match the 40+ points that the Patriots are going to put up.

The other games will actually pretty darn good games but I'm picking the Ravens over Houston, Green Bay over New York and New Orleans over SF.  I think both NFC games are going to be close but the Ravens defense is going to tear apart the Texans.

Is it Saturday yet?

Go Pats!

Football Playoffs 2012

The NFL playoffs are starting off right now with Houston hosting the Bengals followed up by the Saints hosting the Lions.  Even with an unexperienced rookie QB I'm gonna pick the Texans only because they've got the best running back in the game, Arian Foster.  I think Andy Dalton will be a bit calmer under pressure for Cincy but I'm not sure they have the weapons that Houston does.  I'm then going to take the Saints over the Lions because Drew Brees is unstoppable,they've got a pretty decent run game allowing for Drew to throw at will when necessary and even though Detroit has a couple of key players back, Saints will overcome with the victory.

I love football!

Day 7

Getting a lot better with the swelling but still hurts in a few different places.

Day 1!

This was last Saturday. 

An Answer Why?

It really upsets me when bad things happen to good people and in the last couple of weeks that has occurred twice on the peninsula.  2 days before Christmas a friend of mine from work, someone that was one of the first people to welcome me into town, take me out to meet new people and show me around lost her father unexpectedly.  Really?  This is beyond unfair on so many levels that I'm overwhelmed with a lack of understanding to the point of utter frustration!

And then today a good friend of mine from work was struck by a vehicle while walking across the street, in the crosswalk.  Seriously?!  I did not witness the accident but I did see the vehicle on the side of the road afterwards and the windshield was completely smashed in.  This happened on a main road going through Monterey, a road that we all cross to get to work after parking our cars.  How does this happen to someone that is one of the most beloved people at work and who goes above and beyond her call of duty each and every day?  Her and her husband are two of the nicest, most caring people I have ever met and it truly pisses me off that this had to happen to them.  Luckily for her there was no head, neck, or back injury and no internal damage but unfortunately she really destroyed her leg/knee and has already been in surgery today.

I have worked really hard at gaining back an understanding of my religion, to find faith to help me get through my darkest times, but it's times like these that always bring up that question of why?  Why would God do something like this to these people that are so friendly, outgoing, and personable?  To people that are cared about immensely by their peers?  When my best friend lost his father when I was a freshman in college I asked these same questions and I still do not understand why?  I thought good things were supposed to happen to good people?  And while I often believe that everything happens for a reason I am struggling mightily to convince myself that this is true in these two occasions.  There is no reason for a daughter to lose her father or a wife to lose a husband at such a young age, unexpectedly and there is no reason for someone already in a walking boot due to the ankle surgery she was going to have soon to get hit by a flipping car!  But then again I cannot see into the future and I cannot see the path that these two lovely ladies are heading down so I do not know if there is or is not a reason.  I can only ask why and await my answer with patience.

Please keep my friends Andrea and Erin in your hearts, thoughts, and prayers as Andrea and her family cope with the loss of her father and Erin recovers from her major injuries.

Starting Off on the Wrong Foot

Training has officially begun for the 2012 Big Sur International Marathon as of December 26th so it was my first week back after taking a month off.  A bit of a slow start as usual with a couple 3 mile runs, one hill workout, and what was supposed to be my first long run yesterday; 10 miles.  The ten miles started off better than the 5 mile run the day beforehand which was brutal.

I was planning on running from Seaside to Monterey and meet up with Megan and some friends at Del Monte Beach at 11:00.  I had hit my turn around point at the aquarium and started towards the beach when all of a sudden, while passing the Trailside Cafe, I rolled my ankle.  All I did was step from the paved bike path onto the gravel aside of it!  I went down like a pile of bricks in pain after hearing something pop, feeling something snap, and seeing my entire training season get thrown out the window.

Of course in those milliseconds of thought I was overreacting quite a bit but I didn't know.  My ankles are usually quite invincible to rolling them as I've had them literally bounce off the ground before only to roll right back without skipping a beat; but not this time.  This time I was on the ground holding my busted ankle unsure of what to do next.  Should I run back to the aquarium and call Megan to come pick me up or just walk to the beach?  The ankle started feeling a little better right away and I could stand up on it so I untied my shoe, tied it up nice and tight and started my way to the beach.  After walking on it for about 3 minutes I decided it was fine enough to run on and that way I'd at least get to the beach quicker, allowing me to get my foot in the brisk 54 degree water.

No swelling had occured by the time I got to the beach so we went out paddleboarding with 5 of our friends but after an hour I had to call it quits and head home.  We got home and initiated RICE as the swelling started to kick in a bit.  This threw a major wrench into our NYE plans as we had wanted to check out the First Night in Monterey.  Instead we ended up going to a friend's place for a few hours and made it back home for the ball to drop.

This morning I've welcomed in the new year by keeping my leg up, compressed, icing occasionally while it is pretty much the nicest day Monterey has seen in forever.  While this is a minor setback it will not stop me from my training in the long run; although we'll have to see about my first race of the year, a 10-miler on January 28th.

I'll keep you updated...Happy New Year!

Farewell 2011, Welcome to the Party 2012!

Another year gone and what is hopefully going to be an epic year for C Payne, 2012 has arrived.  This past year was overall a pretty darn good year unlike the roller coaster ride of 2010.  I just briefly read over my blogs from the year and I am overwhelmed with how much I accomplished in 2011 and it just excites me even more for 2012.

I saw a lot of family, friends, went to a couple of weddings, ran a bunch of races, went on a lot of new adventures, made new friends, life changing decisions, and of course met one person in particular that has completely changed my life.  Let's take a look at the ups/downs (if any) of 2011.

Running:
- Coyote Hills, Steep Ravine, Bay Breeze, Big Sur Marathon, Sierra Azul, Tough Mudder, Big Sur Half Marathon

All great races; most were difficult courses, others were not.  I broke my 1/2 PR 2x, ran the most scenic marathon on the planet, killed some hills, got beat up by other hills, and made some new friends.

New Places Discovered:
- Pebble Beach, Point Lobos, Sequoia Nat'l Park, Chinatown, Alcatraz, Hearst Castle, Santa Cruz, Hawaii!!

I finally got out of Monterey and started exploring the areas surrounding it.  I also got up to the city a buttload of times and saw a lot of new sites.

Friendly Visits:
- Kristen, Jim and Trish came in February; Steve and Theresa in May; Mizzoni Family Adventure in June, Betz and Kortnie in December

It was great to get to catch up and share this great new life with some of my closest friends that I know from all walks of life!

Ballparks:
- Oakland Colliseum, Angels Stadium, PetCo Park

Got to see a couple of A's games, Angels games, and Padres games; 3 of those 6 games were Sox games!

I Do:
- Mikey Linna married Sara Goblinger and Alicia Hazard married Luial Gilbert!!!

Both July weddings allowing me to get a 10 day vacation back East.  Both weddings were incredible, a bit out of control as expected, but a blast and great time catching up with family and friends.  Congrats to all!

Life Changes:
- Big 3-0!  Spent down in Anaheim and San Diego with Mike and Sara, an absolutely perfect baseball celebration!
- May 1st (Big Sur Int'l Marathon) I met Megan and we've been together ever since and are now living together in Seaside; she's a brave soul!
- October 3rd: 1st day sober, 90 days yesterday.

Extras:
- Learned how to Stand-Up Paddleboard (even purchased one!)
- Experienced first Tsunami scare (thanks for the 4am text Wendy/4:30am call Mom)
- Relay for Life; Event and then Summit
- Seinfeld
- First Christmas spent away from home

Sports:
- Boston Bruins are the 2011 Stanley Cup Champions!!!
- Red Sox are the biggest choke artists since the Yanks in 2004
- NFL Lockout
- NBA Lockout

I hope everyone enjoyed 2011 as much as I did and if not please do not go into 2012 with a pessimistic attitude because this year WILL be better, new adventures WILL happen, new friendships WILL be made, one Boston sports team WILL win a championship!  I'm sorry if I missed anyone/anything, it wasn't intentional and I'll probably have to make some additions...anyway welcome 2012, I cannot wait to see what you have in store for me...and if those Mayans are right then I'm gonna make this one HECK of a year!