Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Yours Truly ran with a Camera....

I knew you would all be excited. This morning I ran a short little 4 miler, and after work I'm going to the park to do another 5.5 miler in order to get in my 9.5 miles today. I know it's not the same getting it in at two different times, but a girls gotta sleep okay! Then this weekend I am planning a nice 11 miler to ready myself for The Surf City Half.



Anyways, this morning I got up early for a little run and decided that I would take my camera with me. Of course, I wore my go-to Target blue long sleeve and some SHORTS! :) Anyways, Now those of you who take pictures, HOW DO YOU DO IT!? I had to like stop. look at the screen. press the button. check to make sure it took. It took forever just to take a few pictures! When I got up and looked out my window I noticed it was still a little dark and I thought, "Boo, today's run is going to be gloomy with no sunrise. LOW AND BEHOLD the best sunrise EVER. Feast your eyes on these babies.



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The beginning of the run. That's the Belmont Pier and then if you look closely you can see the three little stacks on the right hand side of the Queen Mary. Notice it's still a little dark, then I turned the corner....



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Um hello gorgeous sunrise!



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Funny story about these islands. There are a few of these dotting the Long Beach Coast. When I was little I used to think that they were Fashion Island, and upscale outdoor mall. I thought wow, it must be like a dream to ride on a boat and go over there and shop! I can't wait until I'm old enough to do it. Come to find out, they are just oil rigs decorated to look nice because the residents with ocean view were complaining to the city that the rigs were ugly. Needless to say, Fashion Island is fun, but it's not really an island.



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Running along the path



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Here comes the sun... do da deeee dah...



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Ha ha ha! Me, literally running as this picture was taken. This is what I look like after waking up 10 minutes before.



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Gosh, so pretty!



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Then there is a little bay called Naples, please take note of how gorgeous the picture is and how I got the cute old guy running in it! I love it!



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For sale!? How did I ever get this great of a picture?! It's on the bridge overlooking the bay. Simply amazing.



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Over that wall is the beach path, and this is the lovely tree lined street that I was running.



So my run = phenomenal this morning! I was dreading it but it was really motivating and nice to be out and exploring my new turf. I have decided to do the San Diego Rock and Roll FULL marathon, May 31st! I am excited and nervous all at the same time. I know it will be a lot of training, but at the same time, I felt the same way about my first half, and now I feel like I can run those in my sleep. Well maybe not, but I do love that distance, so the full should be twice the fun right? Tomorrow I'm going to post my review on the running skirt, and why I love it so much and also some new great running finds!



xoxo

47 comments:

d.a.r. said...

Gorgeous, gorgeous pictures! Both of you and the scenery. I cannot believe you get to run in that everyday, oh I am sooo jealous.

A full marathon?? That is awesome!! Please keep us updated with training plans and whatnot :)

Allie said...

How gorgeous. I am so jealous. I would love to be able to run everyday along a path like that! Central Illinois just does not look like that...booo. You are very lucky. Good luck with your training for the full! You will do great!

DietCokeStraightUp said...

SO pretty!!!! I might have to drive out there for a run one morning!!! And I've heard the best things about that San Diego Marathon! So good luck with that!!

Stuart said...

Great photos!

You'll love SDRNR it's a great race!

audgepodge said...

Gorgeous photos! These would make great wallpapers for your computer :)

Have fun in San Diego!

Billy said...

Great photos Danica! I agree, it can be a pain in the butt to run with a camera, but on a gorgeous morning like today, aren't you glad you did? You'll get the hang of it in no time, I'm sure...certainly makes blogging easier :)

Awesome about SD! You picked a great 1st marathon...we're all gonna have a blast down there!

Cheetah Girl said...

SO JEALOUS! You are a lucky girly! I'd be ecstatic if I could run with that as my entertainment background... love the pics!!! :)

Amy said...

Awesome pics!

And I'm excited about your plans for the full!!! You're going to love it!

Anonymous said...

i think you missed your calling by not being a photographer.hehe. great pics. way to go on the full for san diego! i bet it will be a blast. i wish i'd be in town to run it but i'll be in alaska for the summer... lame.

joyRuN said...

Great job on the pics! I lurv the sights out on a run, & glad that my phone can take decent pics :)

I've run a couple of laps around Fashion Island. It was dark & early & I didn't know where I was going, so I figured it would be the safest thing to do. I kept thinking it should be out in the water though if they're going to call it an island.

Julie {Angry Julie Monday} said...

Great pictures!

I'm doing Surf City also, but the 5K...I should be doing the 1/2, but I'm lazy!

Sara said...

yeah Danica! i knew you'd cave and decide to do SD :)

you're going to have a great first marathon :)

Marlene said...

Wow, all I can say is that I wish I could wake up a run with a view like that. Thanks for the pics. They're all awesome, but those last two are incredible! Are they HQ enough to blow up and frame? I totally would!

(Too funny about the Fashion Mall story!)

Mollie said...

These pictures are beautiful! I'm so jealous! PS -- I left you something on my newest blog post!

Brandi said...

Love the pics! Beautiful view! I would love to be able to run with a view like that! Good luck on the marathon training and listen when your body says to slow down! I too was training for my first full which is in March and recently injured myself. :( The Dr says it's a no go for this one but maybe next year! Boo

RunToTheFinish said...

I want to hate you, but you're so nice.

Ok you've decided to do SD too, man everyone is doing it. I think I'm going to have to take the plunge

Cindy said...

you are so lucky to have that scenery to run through! how beautiful!

Tami said...

great pictures, i can 9 miles with snow and ice yesterday! mild 30* so it's refreshing to look at your photos

P.O.M. said...

Just catching up. That looks like a glorious run. I ran part of that during the LB Marathon.

You can do a full marathon FO SHO! I have NO doubt in my mind.

I will be running the surf city half with no training. I know I'll finish, but I'm not sure my time will be great. I'm still coughing a lot and it gets worse when I exert myself at all.

~Mrs. Guru~ said...

Awesome pictures!

Denise said...

So pretty! I'm glad you're liking your new neck of the woods!

Yea to the full marathon!!

J said...

YAY for running the marathon! That is so great! I can't wait to hear how the training goes and how the full race goes! Maybe then I will start training for one!!

Those pictures are super sweet! As always you make me want to be in Cali when I read your blog.

Marcy said...

I am totally jealous!! Dang! Looks beautiful ;D ;D

Jess said...

Love the pictures. That's definitely some pretty scenery you have to look at. I don't know how people take pictures and run either.

N.D. said...

Wow - that is gorgeous! so jealous!

Southern Savvy said...

Wow - what a great running path! Thanks for sharing - you're such an inspiration!

Anonymous said...

great blog! what a gorgeous place for a run. you should definately go for a full marathon. i did my first last april after 2 halfs and was a bit skeptical about the full but it is an AMAZING experience!!

Aron said...

WOOOOOOOOOOOO for SD!!!!! i am so excited :)

those are amazing pics!!! wow what a great place to run :)

Tania said...

So jealous of the your scenery on your daily runs! It's so hard for me to get motivated to run here because half of the enjoyment for me is beautiful scenery and there's none of that here. The city of Tucson is one big ugly strip mall. And I'm so against driving somewhere to run!

Marathon Maritza said...

YOU HAVE MADE MY DAY!!!!!!!! Yay, for SD! Whoo-whoo!

These pictures are amazing and gorgeous! You are sooo lucky to get to run there! I miss the beach paths a lot (from my Santa Monica running days.)

Gahhhhhhhh, San Diegoooooooooo!!!

Run For Life said...

Fabulous pics, I want to run there!

Glenn Jones said...

Great pics Danica! Hey - I hear it's warm back home. I'm in Northern New Mexico this week. What's that white stuff on my car?

Pink Pearls & Muddy Sneakers said...

I left you the lovey award, AND i am so jealous of your run!

Anonymous said...

wwowww running in an environment like that! I would run more often :) that is beautiful :)

Tara Gibson said...

what an awesome place to run! GORgeous!

Janice {Run Far} said...

great pictures. I still need to do that sometime... run with the camera. I am so super jealous of your weather and your scenery. WOW!

Jodi said...

hahahaha I am cracking up at the Fashion Island story! I always wondered what those islands were when I was little,but that takes the cake.
Soooo San Diego. Which of course in German means...
Twice the fun, huh? That's one way to look at it! I can't wait to cheer you on!
Love the pics. I live by you and I'm even jealous :)

No Longer Using said...

oooh i'm jealous! i want to do a rock n roller!!!! should be SUPER pump up, i'm a huge music fan and it really gets me going. SUCH A GREAT IDEA DOING A PHOTO RUN! with a great sunrise no less :)

E said...

Love the pictures. Yay for SD! I'm thinking about making that my first full too!

Kim said...

Love the pics! Now you know why when I said it added an hour onto our marathon time at Disney! And we had to wait in line too!

Great job in jumping in and picking a marathon. You'll have a ton of fun.

Diana said...

I was totally taken away by all the pics I forgot what I was reading! Very nice photos-I'd have a huge smile too if that was my running path!

Anonymous said...

nice pics! this inspired me to bring my camera on a run soon (even though there isn't much to see in alabama)!

oh, congrats on the marathon!

OhMyLaughter said...

I love old men runners too. So adorable!

Those pictures are ridiculous. How could anyone live where you do and NOT run?

Julianne said...

Omigosh, those photos are straight out of a magazine or a postcard. Seriously, you are soooo lucky!!!

Donald said...

Hi - I just found your blog today, and wanted to wish you well with your marathon training. If you're an experienced half-marathon runner, you should be able to ramp up to the bigger race just fine.

Great pics, too.

BeachRunner said...

Wow. Great pics. Damn you.

Kevin said...

There is nothing like this in Fort Worth, Texas. Damn.