Faded Blue Jeans: "The ocean is my only medication, wishin' my condition ain't ever gonna go away"

Summer is finally here. May and June had been pretty chilly, but as soon as July hit, the weather turned beautiful. There's not a whole lot to complain about when you live in a place like I do.

But at the same time, it is easy to become complacent - keeping with your daily routine of sitting inside, watching TV, driving everywhere, etc. So we're changing things up this summer. Here's what's on tap:

New lifestyle - B got a new job! He has been looking for this opportunity for several years now and it finally has come together for him. I couldn't be happier that he'll finally truly enjoy what he's doing every day, because even though he's good about this, having a job that you don't love can certainly project on other aspects of your life. So how does this change our lifestyle? He left his old job on July 5th and doesn't start his new one until August 8th. And I work from home. And our apartment is 392 square feet. And, let's be honest, who isn't jealous of someone having a month long summer vacation?? As with any change, though, it just takes getting used to. I must admit, it is pretty nice to have the late afternoons (my work day ends at 2pm) to just hang out with or cook with or shop with B. It almost feels like a weekend every day. And besides, I have to get my time in with him now, since his training begins August 8th for four weeks on the east coast. I will go from overdosing on boyfriend to withdrawal.

Switched-up Workouts - Now that we're into July, the afternoons are getting pretty hot. I used to work out in between the time that I ended my day (2 pm) and when I picked B up from work (5 pm). These days because of the heat, I have to either wait until after 5:30 to run outside, or choose a new workout. This past week, this is what my workouts have looked like:

Monday - biked 15 miles (to lunch, dinner, and around town)
Tuesday - 45 min calisthenics (the ninety-nine), ran 7 miles
Wednesday - ran 10 miles
Thursday - swam 1750 meters
Friday - ran 13.1 miles
Saturday - ran 4 miles, 5 sets of steps, biked 10 miles (part of our bar crawl)
Sunday - biked 25 miles (14 of those exercise, the rest around town), the ninety-nine

My workouts have become a lot more diverse, which I really love. It's been a while (maybe ever?) since I've had such variety in my workout routine, and it really is so much better for your muscles, joints, and body as a whole to switch things up. Besides, now that it's summer and we live on the beach, our parking lots are a DISASTER. If we take our cars out in the afternoons, we will never be able to park again, so biking everywhere is a much easier option. I drove around a quarter mile stretch for a half an hour this weekend at 2:00pm and ended up double parking just so that I could drop groceries off. Speaking of which:

We bike everywhere, and as a result, I have some new bike accessories. I've had the same Cannondale Quick 5 for about 3 years now.

It's been great for exercising and getting around, but what I really want is the two extremes of what my bike is - a beach cruiser and a road bike. So I have made some modifications. First, I finally convinced B to buy another bike (he had one a while ago, got rid of it, and hasn't had one since). Then we convinced our friends Roughly A Runner and her husband to ride along with us. And then I accessorized my bike - A bell, new front light, and cup holder (I wanted a banana seat, but apparently you can only install one on a bike that doesn't have gears).


This need not apply: "Before leaving the house, a lady should stop, look in the mirror, and remove one piece of jewelry" - Coco Chanel

And a basket!

Mine is the far bike - I got a basket!

I figured, after 3 years it could use a little touch up. Much better and ready for summer!

Staycations - Roughly a Runner introduced me to this word and Wikipedia describes it as: a period of time in which an individual or family stays and relaxes at home, or vacations in their own country, possibly taking day trips to area attractions. That is exactly what we have been doing. The last two weekends, we've chosen a direction and headed out on our bikes, stopping at places along the way that look interesting. Last weekend we chose south. We biked to the Manhattan Beach pier (about 12 miles away) and then on the way back, we stopped to check places out (did I mention these were bar crawls??).

Manhattan Beach Pier

Our first drinks of the day at Manhattan Beach Brewing Co.

Locking our bikes up at The Shack in Playa del Rel

A few Sam Adams at The Shack

Third stop was The Whaler in Venice

And a beer

Then the Venice Ale House - a new favorite!

Drinks while waiting for a table outside

And seriously, can you go wrong when you end the night at a bar that you can go into dressed like this (ignore any Red Sox paraphernalia)? Big Dean's, baby!

This weekend we went North toward Malibu: