I’m back and with a Master’s Degree!

It has been months since I have had the time to blog.  The reason is an acceptable one. I was writing my master’s thesis and finishing up my degree.  This was not a fun process. For reference here is a quick timeline and idea of what happens.

·        Two quarters before graduation you take a course titled PPA 691- in this course you write the first two chapters of your paper or at least you are supposed to.

·        One quarter before graduation you enroll with a professor aka reader in a credit/no credit course PPA 698- this course has no meeting time, just one on one time with your reader of choice.  This is when you complete chapters 3-5.

·        You then find a second or pre reader because there must be 2 signatures in the end.

·        Once you have registered for 698 you determine if your research has human subjects in it, if so you have to get approval from the IRB to survey or use human subjects.

·        Once this approval is done you can research, survey and write. 

·        During the process you submit the paper to your readers who give feedback and changes.

·        When the paper is finished you submit to your readers one last time and if they are completely satisfied they will sign off. 

·        Then you must take all submission documents and the paper to the library where a clerk signs it in and scans it onto a database for all to read forever and ever.

My Scrapbook table turned Thesis table.

One of the hardest parts of this paper was deciding on a topic.  I chose animal abuse until I realized I had no personal resources for information and the articles were so sad.  So after a chat with my boss, who happens to have a PHD I decided to write on something I was more involved with, Tourism!  More directly, how destination marketing organizations are funded.  I work for the City of Bakersfield’s Convention and Visitors bureau (The City’s Destination Marketing Organization) I had access to tons of great recourses and understand the subject from all points of view.  This made writing the first two chapters pretty easy.  

I decided to compare how other cities DMO’s were funded with how Bakersfield’s DMO is funded.  See if I could find out which funding source was best.  The process seemed to go ok minus two very serious and irritating issues.

1.      A survey subject who had completely agreed to help me until it was crunch time and she blew me off, she was unavailable and unwilling to answer any of my 100 calls or e-mails.  I eventually had to write my paper without her data and include a caveat about insufficient research.

2.      After my paper is complete and I have my signature and library appointments my professor sends an e-mail that my IRB was not complete. He got this e-mail from the IRB asking for corrections on April 25^th.  He sent it to me on June 6^th, the day before my signature and library appointment. I wanted to strangle him for forgetting to send me this earlier and scrambled all of the 6^th and morning of the 7^th to make changes and get an approved survey. (Remember my paper was done and this approval was for research not yet conducted, but we will just keep that our little secret.) 

Finally on June 7^th about 11am I received approval on my IRB, made the necessary corrections to my paper, got both readers to sign that afternoon and took that damn thing to the library the same day. It was over.   A weight of gigantic proportions was lifted. I will admit I cried all the way from the library to my car with such relief.  

With my Second Reader a co-worker of mine, Donna.

With Monica from the Library. Final step complete! 

On graduation day my awesome co-workers through me a little party with treats and decorations. I got beautiful flowers from Ma and Pa.  I was hooded and walked across stage that night.  It was a very exciting day.

The graduation station set up outside my office.

The most adorable cookies ever. See the one with my name. Awe I'm so special.

Such beautiful flowers delivered from Ma and Pa, nothing like flowers to really make your day! 

Lucky for me I had a partner in crime, my friend Dawn from work and I pretty much went through the MPA program together and got to complain to each other over the stressful thesis process and finally got to graduated together.

Dawn, our friend Ty who was in the English program and I during line up.

 Being hooded by my professor/reader Dr. Martinez and accepting my "fake" degree.

The Graduate, YESSSSS I did it!

The school of my dreams! :-)

A little over a week later I had a great graduation party at the park.  All of my friends pitched into help throw it and we had a yummy dinner of tri-tip, rice, beans, and rolls prepared by Mike.  A One Smart Cookie bar and a La Rosa cart full of ice cream for a hot summer day.  It actually was a beautiful day and very mild weather for Bakersfield at the end of June.  Everyone came, visited, ate, and brought wonderful gifts.  I am a very lucky girl to have so many amazing people in my life.  

The huge very awesome Aubrey spent all day making for me!

The One Smart Cookie Bar everyone pitched in and help bake and Nicole made the great banner (not seen in this photo)

Steph and Jacob enjoying the Chef's dinner. The Chef on his phone. :-)

Some random pics with friends and my Clarabear of course.

Eric with the La Rosa cart.

The End!

Until I go back for my PHD!

Ha Jokes and Jokes and Jokes, NO frigging way!! :-)

Tinkerbell 1/2 Marathon. The good, the bad, and the sweaty!

As I mentioned in a previous blog I was a bit on the nervous side with my first ever 1/2 marathon coming up.  I'm not the running type, never have been. A very very long time ago I told someone I was going to run in something like this one day and he laughed at me! He had a good reason to doubt me, it was years and years after that I actually started to run along with my diet to loose some weight. It was a very short time ago I went from never running to 5k, then got a wild hair one day to registrar for my first 1/2 marathon. 

I was so very nervous all last week building up to run day.  My stomach was in knots and I wasn't sleeping well.  Since my birthday happened to be 3 days before the run it helped take my mind off it a little and it made for a great mini vacation from work.

Thursday I celebrated my 32nd birthday with friends and family.  Had a great amount of birthday treats and an awesome dinner, good timing because it was all about watching what I ate the few days after. I didn't wanna get sick on run day.  I also received the perfect running headphones as a birthday gift from the Cochran/McGee fams.  They were so great for the run.   

New Beats by Dre sport headphones!!!

 
Friday Eric and I laid around the house all day, resting the legs of course.  Saturday morning while Eric had a meeting I downloaded my run play list to my phone and went out to grab a few last minute items.  11am and we were on the way to Anaheim to meet up with my running partners and personal cheering section.  Lisa, Lindsi, Sandra and Andrea had all decided to join in the run with me and we had all been training for months.  Aubrey, the kids, Ma, Tom and Nicole were awesome and came down to watch and support!

We got down to Anaheim Saturday afternoon and checked into the hotel, then walked over to the registration and expo to meet Lisa and Lindsi.  Picked up our race bibs, tracking devices, and T-shirts then walked around the expo for a bit looking at all the nifty running gear.  Then while Lisa and Lindsi rested, Eric and I met up with the cheering section for dinner and hung out for a bit.  At 8ish it was time to head back to the room for a shower and some rest.  It was gonna be an early early morning to get to the race on time.

 Lisa, Lindsi and I at the expo!

Sleep did not come easy, to nervous and excited I laid down close to 9pm and woke up thinking oh sheesh I bet I have to be up in just a few minutes to start getting ready, checked the clock and it was 9:44pm WTH.  Slept off and on like that the rest of the night, until I was woke by a light in the room.  "What time is it?" I asked Lisa and Lindsi who were over by the mirror getting ready.  3:30am!  "Oh hell, the time had come."  So my nervous belly and I got into the shower.  Getting dressed and ready to head out I really did have to ask myself WTH was I thinking signing up for this.  :-)

4:05am and we were ready.  A quick before picture we headed off to meet Aubrey and Ma, the brave souls who were going to join Eric in seeing us off at the crack of dawn.  We all walked to the starting area in a parking lot next to Paradise Pier Hotel, where we met up with Sandra, Andrea and Travis.  Then it was jittery chatting until they announced we needed to start making our way to our corral.  

 

We can fly, we can fly, we can fly!

 Walking through Disneyland Resort and Downtown Disney to the starting line!

Sandra, Misty, Andrea, Lisa and Lindsi. We are ready to run!

 On the way to my corral!

Once we were in our corral E on Disneyland Dr. right in between Paradise Pier and Grand CA, it seemed as if we stood there forever, chatting and stretching, watching all the other runners do the same.  Finally we saw the fireworks to start the race, but we didn't move.  It was still almost 30 minutes before our corral made it to the start line and we could hear the announcers and see the Ready, Set, GO! sign.

 There were 13,000 runners! Only 900 guys. 

We had to be there at 4:30, in our corral by 5:15 and the run started at 5:45am, still very dark.

Then just like that we were off, still walking at first until the crowd of runners started to break up and move a little faster. I lost all the girls as soon as we started to pick up the pace, so the music went on and I just started running. Up Disneyland Dr. to Ball rd and I hit our first mile marker.  It seemed like nothing.  Ball rd down to Harbor and then a quick right into the employee area of Disneyland and there was mile marker 2.  We continued to run through the back lots of Disneyland which was super exciting for a Disney freak like me.

 Super secret back area of Disneyland!

Then we popped out next to its a small world, ran past the teacups (my favorite ride) and Alice in Wonderland where I saw Lisa waiting on Lindsi to take a quick bathroom break. Then it was back into the unseen parts of the park again until we made our way to main street, running right up main street and through the castle was just about as worth it as that medal was.  Through Fantasyland, and Frontierland got me to mile marker 3.  Then on to New Orleans square, past the haunted mansion and into Pooh's corner where we again went behind the scenes until we were through a gate and into Downtown Disney. 

Lisa waiting for Lindsi inside the park, because we heard those bathrooms were cleaner. 

 

Running down Main Street Disneyland, CA!

 

Through the castle! My favorite parts of the run, besides the finish of course. 

 

New Orleans Square. Look at all those runners!

 

There go Lisa and Lindsi!

Close to the End of Downtown Disney by Rainforest Cafe was mile marker 4 and my cheering section signs and all! This gave me the boost I needed and passing mile markers 5 and 6 which had me on Manchester Ave and seemed like nothing. 

 Looking disheveled and sweaty, but happy at mile marker 4!

After mile 6 is where it got a little boring and I focused on a girl ahead of me wearing the same team sparkle running skirt to make sure I was keeping a good pace and not slowing down.  We were running through residential neighborhoods and people were on their porches, or in law chairs with their children like we were a damn parade.  Then again with the outfits everyone had on, I guess we kinda were.  It was very cool because at ever big intersection or mile marker there were local high school bands and cheerleaders as well as spectators yelling encouragement.  Since our names were printed on our race bibs they would even use our names, it was a great motivator.

Mile 7 is where my first blister popped up. I knew it because it was in the same spot (baby toe) as the last time I had trained on a long run.  I kept telling myself I would stop at the next mile marker and get a band aid, but to afraid I would loose my pace, I just kept going.  Mile 8 and I felt the other baby toe blister. I had read a medical tent would be at mile marker 9 but if it was I must have missed it.  So I passed mile marker 9 blisters and all, grabbed a Cliff shot for energy and listened as the announcer told my pack of runners we were 6 minutes ahead of pace. 

By this time we were in the Cerritos Ave and Lewis St area, very industrial looking, not much fun at this point.  I had passed my skirt twin girl, my body was hurting, my feet and blisters were no bueno but damn if I had come this far I was not stopping now.  So I pushed, all I kept thinking was how awesome it was gonna be to see that finish line and to see my cheer sections faces when I finally finished. 

Aubrey and Jack Jack waiting at the finish line!

Everyone at the finish line. 

Nicole made this adorable sign, since Clara calls me aunt Fishy. They said all the runners thought it was just a random sign and liked her random encouragement. :-)

Mile marker 10 had some military people and a band but the best part was hearing I was 16 minutes ahead of pace.  Woo Hoo I only had 3 to go and even if I had to slow down a bit I would still make it.  About 10 1/2 miles I saw Andrea, she was hurting just as bad a I was so we slowed it down and walked a bit. Passed mile marker 11 on Disney Way and we could see the Grand CA, so we sped up and headed into the park through an employee gate close to Tower of Terror.  Down the Hollywood back lot around Sunshine Plaza and up past Soaring Over Ca and Grizzly Run.  That is were I saw the churro cart and thought wouldn't it be nice to sit down and eat a churro right now. NOOOOOO run fatty RUUUUNNNNNNN!!! :-) 

We made our way past the wharf and hit mile marker 12 before heading into a bugs land which then spit us out next to Tower of Terror again and we ended up behind the park in another employee area close to CA Screaming.  Andrea and I just kept telling each other how close we were and how amazing that we were about to finish this thing.  Other runners had the same idea because I could hear them doing the same thing, some talking about what they were gonna have for lunch after. :-)  So close to Mile 13 we could see Paradise Pier Hotel in front of us.  We rounded the corner at Disneyland Way and Katella and Ta-Da mile marker 13.

 Andrea and I snapped a quick picture with our very last mile marker 13!!!!!

Since a 1/2 marathon is 13.1 miles we had about a block to go until we could see the finish line so of course we picked it up and jogged in for our VICTORY!  It's so hard to describe the way hitting that finish line felt.  I teared up, either from the excitement that I had finished or from the pain of that 3rd blister and body soreness. :-) 

 Yay I made it!

Andrea and I headed to get our medals!

Either way once my medal was collected, they took what I'm sure will be a hideous finisher photo and we got some water, I felt so accomplished!  I thought to myself as I made my way to the reunion area, remember this feeling because no matter how many runs I do, it will never feel like this again. 

 So tired after I just had to sit down and I did not care where. 

So proud of my first ever 1/2 marathon medal! 

 Andrea, Sandra and I at the finish area. 

All of us together at last after 13.1 miles and over 3 hours. 

My Chocolate Bear told me about 6 times that afternoon how proud he was of me. Awe so sweet. 

We all met up and congratulated each other, took photos and then said goodbye to our fellow runners Sandra, Andrea and their families.  Then came the worst part of the day, the walk back to the hotel uhhhh it was awful and it only got worse.  After a shower and check out we headed to Glendale for some Cheesecake Factory. Lisa and Lindsi had to head home so Eric and I ate with Aubrey and the fam, then headed home.

 With Jack at Cheesecake factory, look a little less beat than I feel!

I was so sore, that I'm sure people watching me try to walk thought I just had surgery or something.  I looked very similar to someone who just gave birth C-section style. :-)  Once home I took a long hot bath, ate some dinner and passed out on the couch watching TV about 7:15pm. Over 12 hours of sleep later and I am feeling much better, not in any shape to talk about my next run, but at least better enough to write this blog.  :-)  

  There she is, my favorite Disney character and a magnificent reward for my hard work!