Jenny's Adventures - Cedar River & Lake Washington Trails

Cedar River Trail
I rode part of the cedar river trail last year but it's a long one so we didn't make it all the way. Last week, hubby and I rode it again, just a different section of it. As you can see, this section is pretty flat and boring but it does go along the river so you get to see and hear the river at some spots.

Courtesy of mapmyride.com
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/33817638

Hubby has matching shoes so I let him ride Jenny for a bit.

Weeeeeee!

Lake Washington Loop
This loop is just under 52 miles start to finish with a few decent sized hills to get your heart rate pumping. I didn't do the full loop yet but plan to tackle it in June. My new bicycle buddy and I did about 10 miles of moderate hills from just north of the Renton Municipal Airport to the I-90 bridge and back.

Courtesy of mapmyride.com
http://www.mapmyride.com/s/routes/view/bike-ride-map/washington/seattle/1989913

ReAnimateHer in a music video. Yeehaw!

Enjoy!

 

Just how hard ReAnimateHer ROCKS!


Rat City Rollergirls


Who loves derby?

Sparkpeople

I just got my sparkpeople page up and running. If you're on there, please come find me. I like friends.

SalinaLyn

#1 Goal for 2011

Melt the fat like an ice cube on a sizzling griddle.

I officially started the weight loss journey in February 2009. "Officially" meaning when I began the consistent effort and not giving up even when I slip a little. I'm like every other person on the planet who has tried to lose weight and given up a number of times but I can honestly say that although I haven't gotten far in my journey, I have not given up, not even for a second. I trip and fall but dust myself off and get back to business every time.

February 2009, I weighed in at 178.6 lbs. For a 5 foot tall little thing like me, that's a lot of weight. I was consistently eating about 2,000 calories a day and although I was exercising, I was only burning an average of 70 calories above and beyond my basal metabolic rate (due to my inconsistent exercise habits). That just so happened to also be the month that I had my metabolic rate tested too. According to the calculations you get from the many standard charts out there in Internet land, I should have been burning around 1,850 calories per day at rest. When I got tested, I was burning 1,296 at rest. Then, they added another 387 calories to that to take my daily lifestyle into consideration. When all is said and done, I actually burn 1,683 calories a day just being me.

2,000   Avg. Calories intake (food I ate)
1,683   Avg. Calories I burned in a day just being me
-70       Avg. Calories I burned in a day on average from exercise
247      Avg. Calories I was in the hole on a daily basis

With those excess calories in my diet, I could expect to gain 1 lb of fat every two weeks.
Something had to change!

Here's what I did/DO:

• I altered my diet to eat whole foods and limit the processed crap.
• Reduced my calorie intake to 1,400-1,500 calories per day.
• 50% carbs, 30% protein, 20% fat intake which for 1,400 calories per day equals 175g carb, 105g protein, 31g fat.
• Drink 60 oz water every day (at least)
• Take Vitamin D - My doctor and the nutritionist I hired at the time informed me that vitamin d helps in weight loss. It also does wonders for mood and skin as well.
• Exercise 6 days per week burning 400 calories each session.
• Target heart rate - 140 beats per minute (75% of maximum HR = Maximize fat burning zone)
• Alternate days with interval training - target heart rate 125 bpm for 1 minute then reach 166 bpm within 30 seconds and hold it there for another 1.5 mins before letting it drop to 125 again, rinse and repeat for 35 mins minimum. This is GOLD for repairing a broken metabolism!
• Incorporate strength training to tone muscle (muscle is a fat burning machine) 2-3 days per week.
• Because I get bored easily, I started incorporating a different/new physical activity into my plan every month to stay interested and engaged in being active...thus was born Living Active.
• Sleep - Getting a full night's sleep is absolutely necessary to set me up for success. When I'm tired, I'm more likely to get moody and emotionally eat and less likely to plan or prepare healthful meals.

Here's the math: Calories Summary

1683 Maintenance Calories
1400 Daily calorie intake (16.8%/283 calorie deficit)
400   Calories burned w/exercise
683   Total calorie deficit per day
4098 Total calorie deficit per week (1400 intake, 400 burn 6days/week, 1683 calories on Sunday)
1.17  Lbs fat lost each week
1500 Max calorie intake 6days/week to still lose 1lb/week


From February 2009 to October 2010, I managed to lose 20lbs. That's 20lbs in 85 weeks. Yikes! An average loss of 0.23 lbs per week. That's definitely not the 1lb per week I was planning for.

Since October 2010 when I weighed in at 159lbs, I managed to gain a few back. Sunday, January 16th, I weighed in at 167.2. That's a gain of 8.2 lbs in 16 weeks. Um...ya...that's an average gain of 0.5 lbs per week.

So obviously I'm not perfect. What happened? Oh life. Life happens. Holidays, birthdays, fun with friends, laziness, illness, injuries, etc. Life! The point isn't how much or how little I accomplished, the point is that I'm still here. I'm still active, I'm still living the journey, and I'm still not giving up.

In the spirit of not giving up and redefining my goals for the year, I put this one on the top of the list. This year, I want more than anything to reach a healthy weight/size/shape for me. I don't want anything outrageous. Don't care if I'm a size 2 or if I've got a six pack. Don't care if I'm supermodel material. I just want to be healthy and happy in my skin. Because I believe in setting hard and fast goals that can be measured as well as attainable, I feel the need to assign a number to this here plan of mine.

A healthy person of my size and stature should be between 106 and 123 lbs. I've been 106 lbs before and I think I was probably too damn skinny because I didn't have any muscle at all. That's too small for me. I'll shoot for 120. If I stick with the plan to lose 1 lb per week, which is doable if I exercise regularly and eat between 1,400 and 1,500 calories per day, I could reach that goal by the first week of December. Is it challenging? YES. Can I do it? YES. Am I going to try? Absolutely! Will I be crushed if I don't make it? No. As long as I don't give up on myself, I'm happy being content with progress. Progress means I'll get there eventually and eventually is better than never so I'll take it. And in the meantime, I'll continue to enjoy this active lifestyle that is now the norm for me.

So there you have it.
My #1 goal for the year.
My justification behind it.
My plan for how it will be done.

Because I'm totally and completely analytical about this kind of stuff, I also have it broken down into daily habits.

EVERYDAY

1. Eat 1,400 calories (50% carb, 30% protein, 20% fat)
2. Exercise burning 400 calories
3. Track all food and exercise on sparkpeople
4. Drink at least 60oz of water
5. Take Vitamin D
6. Sleep 8 hours
7. Journal (feeding my soul is critical too)

What is your #1 goal for 2011? And how do you intend to accomplish it?

Exciting News

Today, my friends, I get to be featured on FitBlogger. Yay for me! I'm pretty sure the post is a masterpiece but you can be the judge of that. Go on over there and take a look for yourself. Don't forget to leave comments. You know how I love those.

In other news, I had an idea. A master plan if you will. But aren't all my ideas brilliant? No. Anyway...

New Years Resolutions
I've noticed over the past couple years that my gym fills up in January and February then in March it starts dying down again. Three words - New Years Resolutioners. Every year, we begrudgingly put a list of goals together because we typically feel like crap if we don't and every year we fight with ourselves about whether or not we should actually do what it takes to get a move on any of the things on the list. Do we really WANT to do what it takes to change our lives? Sometimes. But if we could have exactly what we wanted without having to do any work for it, would we gladly sign right up for that option? Absofreakinlutely!

I've read articles over the years that say we're actually better off not making an new years resolutions. Why? Because the chance of us actually following through with our goals or promises to ourselves is slim to none. The majority of us will make a list, contemplate what we need to do to realize those goals, maybe we'll try for a little while (a month or two), then decide it's just too much work and we give up. I don't know about you but when a friend of mine tells me that they are going to be there for me or do something with me and then they don't show up or give up on me after minimal effort, I feel dumped and unimportant. I'll typically give them a couple chances because lets face it, people are fallible and we all make mistakes. After a few times of being let down and disappointed though, I'll eventually stop trusting them. What do you think happens when we give up on ourselves? Same damn thing.

In my opinion, setting news years resolutions is a golden opportunity to build some valuable self efficacy. If you struggle with believing in yourself, it's time to put yourself to a challenge. Not a list of challenges. One! Choose one thing that you want more than anything else in the world and focus your attention on it. If and when you do that, you end up feeling like you can conquer the world which is contagious. All we need is one little flame lit inside us and with every small success, the fire grows and before we know it, we have flames shooting out our asses.

So how do we do it? How do we get that tiny little flame to start burning? Well, it's a 12-step process. Naaaaa, just joking. One more word for you: SUPPORT. Ignore the nay sayers, they've just given up on themselves and want to feel less shitty about it by making the rest of us believe we can't succeed either. That's bullshit! Let the nay sayers learn from our example instead, that's what I say.

Over the past couple years, I've struggled and experienced a few successes as well. I sometimes get down on myself and judge myself too harshly but I have figured one thing out for sure, no matter what...I NEVER GIVE UP on ME. I can't take much of the credit though. The one thing I've done right in my estimation is I got myself a support network. I kinda sorta feel like it's payback time. I'm still chugging along with my own goals and stuff but I really really really want to be there for others too.

So my brilliant idea is this: I'm offering to be your Accountabilibuddy if you want one. I'll share my goals for the year and my plans for successfully accomplishing them if you will do the same? If you're struggling with what to do or how to do it, tell me and I'll do what I can to be a resource or just a cheerleader in your corner. If you have advice or suggestions for me or for others to get that flame a'burnin', email me or leave comments. I want to give more than I want to take this year. We can do this new years resolution thing together and show the nay sayers where they can shove it.

So what do you think?

The Great 2011 Adventure

My last post was about all the things I'm most proud of from last year. Well, I do have to admit that what I displayed there did not reflect ALL that I did and am proud of which makes it even more rewarding to me. This year, I have a new adventure planned and yesterday was the first step on the journey that will likely last all year long and quite possibly longer. But before I get to that, I suddenly decided that I want to give some of the other things I did in 2010 the attention and curtsy they deserve.



Hiking in the Redwoods





Golfing



Swimming bliss

Belly Dancing classes and bought my very own finger cymbals

I was taking lessons in the beginning of the year then put my guitar down for a few months and recently picked it back up again. That's my happy place. I tried to name her Lucille but hubby said that name is already taken by BB King. :(

Down 2 notches.

Japanese cooking day was a blast and oh so good

Totally and completely landscaped my yard (front, back, and sides)

I invented the Tortizza. Yummmmm!

I managed to read a few books last year too.

 

And now, for the pièce de résistance......drum roll please....

Hubby and I are taking French classes together. First class was last night. And if you're interested, our teacher puts her lessons for newbies on her French blog. I took one year of French in high school after taking 2 1/2 years of Spanish before that. I just remember it being so frustrating because I would get the two languages mixed up and speak Frenish which no one understood but me.

Last night we went through tons of stuff.

• Pronunciation
• Body parts by way of singing head and shoulders, knees and toes
• Weather
• Gender
• Greetings

I have a list of homework and a text book that I can't understand. I thought it would all come back to me but so far...no such luck.

A bit of the story is still missing though. I left out the reason for my lessons.

That's riiiiiight! If all goes right this year, I will find myself taking my next international vacation sometime during the year. It's about time too. It's been about 5 years since my last hop across the pond.

 

What great adventures do you have planned for the year? Losing weight, exercising, running marathons, going back to school, getting a new job, starting a business, facing your fears, something else?

The Artist's Way week 6-7

The Artist's Way Week 6

I only journalled one day last week. ONE! No wonder I'm feeling a little lethargic today. Nevermind that it's 6am on a Monday morning. I'm sure that has nothing to do with it what-so-ever. I thought about journalling all week. I had every intention of journalling all week. I just never picked up my notebook and my pen to make it happen except one lonely time on Wednesday.

Week 6 was about abundance. Personally, I don't really have much trouble with this concept. What I have trouble with is more along the lines of believing that I'm "lucky enough" to be included in the list of people that get to reap the rewards of the abundance concept. Yes, for some strange reason, I tend to see myself as an exception to most universal laws and human conditions. Maybe it's an illogical egotistical thing. I don't know. In order to overcome this twisted thinking, I just practice visualizing my ideas of a perfect world. Pictures of condos in New York, paintings of cottages on the beach, a passport packed full of stamps, maps of the countries I still want to visit, and images of experiences I dream of having appear on my computer desktop and tickle me with anticipation. It's a pleasant reminder that the world is a much larger and flatter place than my day-to-day routine allows me to see. The pictures appear and whisper "don't forget out us" as I'm dealing with family drama, back-to-back meetings, and overflowing inboxes. Truth is, it's not a matter of IF, it's a matter of WHEN I will realize the experiences I dream of.

Week 7 is all about recovering a sense of connection. Connection huh? Rediscovering the airy breath that speaks the language of creative indulgence. I love the mention in this chapter about how Michelangelo said that he simply released David from the marble block he found him in. Have you ever seen the David? Magnificent! I could have sat in that gallery all day long just staring at him. To me, he seems both powerful and timid. He is a strong protector but is not lacking vulnerability. Perfection (even with the oversized hands and slightly disproportioned body)!

Connection seems to be all about how to get out of your own head and allow the creative voice to speak to you. True artists don't create, they allow. Writers don't think, they listen. You've heard of white knuckles or wishful thinking? White knuckling life is all about control. Squeezing the life out of everything because we need complete control. Wishful thinking is the opposing side where we simply throw our hands up and wish and hope for things to work out but typically this is paired with taking absolutely no action toward making our wishes real. In other words, we wish but aren't willing to do the footwork. Connection is about finding the balance between the white knuckles and wishful thinking. Letting go of the control while remaining open and willing to witness what the universe has to present.

This week, I'm going to do my best to let go and let it be what it will. Instead of stressing out about my stupid shin splints and all the what-ifs related to that, I will go with the flow and see where it takes me. Instead of forcing my agenda at work or with family and friends, I will participate and contribute without directing. Perhaps this will be a good week to pick up my guitar and listen to that beautiful voice I've chosen to ignore for a few months. We shall see.

How was your week 6?
What can you let go of this week?

Fitness Fear Friday - Shin Splints & Hot 100

A week or so ago, I went to my gym and was talking to my favorite cutie petutie front desk boy there. He was telling me all about how he has started training to run a full marathon but that he's been having strange pains in his shins. In the past few years, I've had my fair share of shin grief so I told him about my experience doing the breast cancer 3-day walk a couple years ago and all the post event treatment I had to go through to recover from that. He got a congested look on his face and said "oooooo, ouch - did you have to go get shin splints? I think I might need to get some."

So obviously that got my wheels a-spinnin' just a little. Is this the picture he had in his head about shin splints I wonder? Or maybe it was the image of a couple sticks and some duct tape wrapped around his leg?


Leg Splint

Here is the definition according to Wikipedia: Shin splints is a general medical term denoting medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS), a slow healing and painful condition in the shins, usually caused by exercise such as running, jumping, dancing or other sports. Ten to fifteen percent of running injuries are shin splints.

Shin Splints

What does all this have to do with me right this particular moment? Good question. I've got the damn shin splints again. I'm sure it's because I've been jumping rope a lot more than I really need to in order to teach the Punk Rope class and apparently...I'm fragile or some shit. In all honesty, it's not a surprise that I'm having pains in my shins again. I had problems during the breast cancer walk, I had problems when I started the C25K program earlier this year, I had problems when I took the Punk Rope instructor training. It's just unpleasant and I don't appreciate it much at all, especially when I'm trying to do things here.

My fear for today is that I will have to sacrifice something or multiple somethings in order to do Punk Rope.

• My shins of course
• The other exercise I do because I'll need to spend time every week recovering from the damage I do to my shins every weekend
• Alllll my time
• More of my own money
• My weekend freedom

My other fear is that I will have to sacrifice Punk Rope for those things listed above.

I don't know if this has any validity or not but I found this picture on a medical site that described some treatments for shin splints. Perhaps I'll give it a try and see how it works this weekend for my Punk Rope class. Other than that, anti-inflamatory, ice, and rest are the only other treatments I'm aware of.

Shin Taping

---------------------
HOT 100
---------------------
The OG
The Hot 100 Daddy
The Update

1. Weight - Now this is a strange one right this moment. I don't know what to say other than...huh? I stepped on the scale last Saturday and it said 162.4 which is pretty much what I was expecting. Then, because my normal weigh in day is Sundays, I decided to step on it to confirm what I saw the previous day and I saw 164.2. Very very strange considering that I burned 900 calories on Saturday doing Punk Rope and drank a ton of water and ate perfectly healthful foods. 2 pounds overnight? I don't believe it. So I'm suspending judgement until I step on the scale again this weekend.
1. Water - Not as well as I hoped but I'm determined to do it damn it.
2. Workout - This one sucks butt this week. I haven't been able to exercise at all because I've been limping all week long with shin splints. Anti-inflammatories and ice just aint cutting it yet.
3. Meal plan - Yes!
4. Tracking - Yes
5. Sleep - Yes, for the most part. I had a couple nights of tossing and turning but I'm not depriving myself of sleep so that's good.
6. Journal - Not too much, no.
7. Food - Healthful planned meals every day. Yay!
2. Blog - Yes
3. Book - Nope. Not even trying anymore.

Regardless of what my progress on the Hot 100 goals looks like, I'm feeling pretty damn good. I looked at my goals for 2010 a couple months ago and came to a nasty realization that I hadn't accomplished much this year in terms of being able to definitively cross anything off my list. I did become a certified personal trainer which was a weird thing for me and I did overcome one of my biggest fears this year. I actually did Punk Rope. I'm actually DOING Punk Rope! Just a couple months ago, I had pretty much written it off as a failed attempt and a reason to feel shame so turning it around and making it happen before the end of the year feels like a huge victory.

Victory lap! And the crowd roars with excitement. No? Just in my head? Whatever.


PLEASE

1. Vote for my January activity. Top right side bar, you'll find a poll. Vote vote vote! Pretty please.
2. Check out the Punk Rope Seattle facebook page and share it with all your friends. With a cherry on top.

The Joy of Finger Binging

Today, boys and girls, I'm going to teach you all about, yup you guessed it, finger binging. Finger binging is fun for the whole family. No really, I mean it. Why more people don't learn how to properly finger bing is really a mystery to me. I can't believe it took me this long to discover just how fun and enjoyable it is.

Ah Geez! Get your minds outta the gutter people. I'm talking about playing the finger cymbals for belly dancing.

Recently, I went to dinner at a local Persian restaurant in Seattle where they have a belly dancer perform a couple nights every week. Of course I have to explore the belly dancing culture while I'm desperately trying to immerse myself in the month's activity.

First - The restaurant, Caspian Grill

Fabulous food. Fabulous service. The decor is outdated though, which would be my guess as to why they aren't more popular. Well, that and their location isn't the greatest. They are located in the University district but are a bit removed from all the action of the strip. We got there at about 7:45pm and the belly dancing was scheduled to start at 8pm. We got seated front and center with no problem at all. The dancer came out a little late but it wasn't a big deal.

Dressed in hot pink pants, a jeweled bra, and flowing scarfs she shook and shimmied everything as it should be I suppose. A lovely voluptuous dancer she was and she did a great job of making eye contact with each and every person in the room. I think she was flirting with me. No....that's just her job. I couldn't help but feel that something was missing from her performance though. She had the costume, she had the moves, she had the music, she had the attitude. She was missing the finger binging. No cymbals?

I had no idea how much those little accessories add to the entire belly dancing experience until I thought I was going to watch a whole set without any tiny cymbals crashing together. But not to fret, half way through, out they came. Oh how wonderful! Three cheers for finger bingers! Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!

Then I realized something. I realized that my new little girl crush Fuchsia Foxxx did her entire set at the Pink Door without any finger binging. And there was no mention of finger cymbals in her class either. Uho....have I signed up for a class that doesn't teach the essential piece of the belly dancing puzzle? She's a master of the undulation and the snakey sexiness but what about putting my little musical instruments to good use? No such luck? Alas, I guess I'll need to focus on my own personal finger binging experience in private. Playing with yourself has a time and a place but when it comes to finger binging...I much prefer playmates. Don't you?

I shared a few videos last month but I came across an interesting website that might help with the self study finger bingers out there. The below link goes through different patterns you can practice but there is quite a bit of other information on there for music selections, technique, etc. Check it out if you want.

Zill Patterns

Because some prefer to watch and listen to reading, first play it with no sound. Then try again with the sound on.

Octobelly dancing

Octobelly dancing?

Why did The 12 Days of Christmas song just pop into my head? Not at all what I was going for but whatever.

October is officially the month for shaking and shimmying and I have a plan folks. Yes indeed!

I found a facility in Seattle that was offering a great deal for any newbie signing up to try a few classes. $25 for 5 classes in a one month time period. Perfect for me! Especially considering I have a little bit of a late start this month because it took what feels like forever to find a class that would work. There are a number of belly dancing teachers in my area and a few organized classes but it seems that the majority of them offer 6 or 8 week sessions and it just so happens that I'm late for the start of all of the sessions. I was worried that I would have to let you all down but no, we're safe because I found:

Skin Deep

I will be attending a beginners belly dancing class on Tuesday and Saturday through the end of the month. Actually, to be slightly more accurate, I will be attending a beginners belly dancing class on Tuesdays and a bollywood class on Saturdays.

Did she just say bollywood?

YES, yes I did! Bollywood. Stay tuned...

Oh don't you wish you could see me in action with vlog entries instead of these lame descriptions? So sorry to disappoint but you might just have to settle for what I give you. If you're lucky, I might be able to get a couple pictures snapped but chances are that I will not be posting any kind of video proof of this activity.

Notice I do include some skating on Thursdays still and a couple bike rides with Jenny. I just can't stand to abandon my sweet Jenny girl after the amazing bonding experience we've had in the past few weeks.

I will get my plans together for November martial arts and December boxing too. More to come on that later.

Hot 100 - Week 2

The OG
The Hot 100 Daddy

The Update

1. Sunday, October 3rd I weighed in at 161. Yes folks. I hate to say it but it's true. The little dip into the 150s was yet again a temporary thing. Seems that I lost 2lbs in one week then gained them all back in one week. Not sure what that's all about but it's true none the less. Personally, I think it's all about my head. I think there's something in my silly little brain that says "Hey, you're in the 150s again...way to go...now you can relax a little....go have a beer and some southwest egg rolls....no problemo". And I go: "Really? RAD!". Der D Der.
1. I didn't drink enough water again although I was trying....well half the time.
2. I worked out 4 days instead of 5.
3. I did meal plan but didn't follow it as closely as I would have liked.
4. I tracked but only loosely.
5. Sleep has been strained. Not sure why but even with Tylenol PM...I still woke up in the middle of the night. More exercise should fix that.
6. I'm happy to report that I have successfully journaled every day and coincidentally, I'm in much better spirits this week. Funny how that works.
7. I didn't take the Oktoberfest free day as planned because when we got to the festivities...IT SUCKED. So we just turned around and came home. No beer or brauts for me. Probably better than way. I do have my Greek cooking day tomorrow though. Looking forward to it. Ooooopa!
2. Wrote 3 blogs this week. Success! I had a slow start in the week though so I didn't do a Monday post but whatever. I do what I can in as little time as I have.
3. The writing work on the book is still on my wish list and not on my schedule. But after doing a little thinking this week, I decided that I need to put it on my schedule. Time to write and allow myself to be creative in between all my scheduled TO-DOs. Good plan.

Jenny's Adventures on the Green River Trail

The infamous Green River. Have you heard of the Green River Killer before? Check it out.

I was a kid when all those killings were happening but I remember it all. I lived with my family in some apartments south of Seattle. The apartments were right along the Green River. I remember there being a little foot bridge that led to a wooded area across the river and my parents and all the neighbors would hide Easter Eggs over there for all the children every year. I thought it was so much fun to hunt for the eggs in the woods.

Then one day, it all changed. There were helicopters everywhere over head and news cameras combing the neighborhoods and the woods. There were police officers everywhere. They even had scuba divers searching the murky water for victims of the then mysterious Green River Killer. He's not so mysterious anymore though.  

Perhaps it's time that Jenny and I revisit the beloved Green River?
Here are our adventures.

Scrounging through my horribly small and unimpressive wardrobe, I managed to find what I think is a cute first attempt at appropriate bicycle fashion. I actually bought this skirt to wear roller skating but still haven't managed to use it for it's intended purpose. So why not just substitute 2 wheels for the 8 (count them - quad skates = 4 wheels on each skate x 2 skates....ah yes)?

Bicycle Fashion

A closer look at just how cute I am. You're expecting me to click my heels together aren't you? Well I'm not going to do it.

I'm sorry but I must admit that I'm damn cute in my new tights and school girl skirt

One of my favorite things about riding bicycles lately is all the art you get to see. I've seen a lot more sculptures and paintings and gardens and plaques in the past few weeks with Jenny than I've ever noticed before and I just love it.


Guardrail Stencil


One of the things about the Pacific Northwest is that we get a lot of Native American art. I don't have anything against the Native Americans or their art but I just don't find it appealing to my eye. None the less, here are a couple pieces along the Green River Trail. Enjoy!

Native American Art

More Native American Art

Enough of that stuff. Ghetto art please?

Ah....now that's more like it. Graffiti anyone?

Why hello there. Normally I wouldn't taunt you with what you can't have but I will tell you that I was a little disappointed when I took this picture. There was a whole group of about 7 cyclists that came through right then but I only managed to get the last one. That wouldn't be a problem except for the fact that they ALL smiled and they ALL waved with the same hand at the same time with the graffiti in the background. My stupid camera wasn't quick enough to get it done in time though. Sad.

A opportunistic friendly passerby

More graffiti art...

I'm not sure what it is but I like it. A duck? A sumo? Hello!

I love all the bridges along the bike trails too. Green River Trail was rich with them. There were a couple really narrow ones and windy ones and old ones and tall ones. I couldn't take pictures of them all though I did try to get some to share with you. See how thoughtful I am?

One bridge

When I was a kid living by the Green River, my dad would take my brother and I down to the river to throw our fishing poles in the water too. I don't know why, but I completely forgot about that until just this moment when I saw people by the water's edge patiently waiting in their beer haze for the day's catch.

A beautiful day for fishing the Duamish/Green/Black River (whatever it's called)

Don't you just feel the stress melting away?

Just a nice peaceful ride along the tree-line river trail

Foster Golf Links is actually a decent course. It's relatively short but is well kept with gorgeous trees and fairways. They have decent food too.

What? Happy Hour!

Passersby who seemed a little camera shy

I know you were asking yourselves...that's nice and all but what about Jenny. Calm down, keep your pants on. Here she is. Like I would do a post about her adventures without including her. She wouldn't let me anyway. She's actually a little vain. Loves her picture taken. I'm probably to blame for that with all the doting.

Yes Jenny, you look very pretty in that light

You give the husband a camera and this is what he comes up with.

Uho....left or right?

It was my first time ever riding in a skirt and I must say that I really did enjoy it. Although, I will share with you that I noticed a few passersby drop their eyes to "down there" wondering if they were going to get a peak at what I'm wearing underneath.

We picked right.

Now where is that clip of the Laverne and Shirley theme song?

Now don't we make a cute couple?

What to do now? The trail is closed. It looks like an official sign and everything. I've been on that part of the trail before and it really is nice and windy right along the river.

No! Since when do I follow rules? Never.

Well, as you can see, we chose to bust through the official sign and take our chances with any legal ramifications because we live for ADVENTURE. After all, this is all about Jenny's Adventures.

Rules or not, none shall pass

But alas, the officials outsmarted us by stacking a few miles worth of sandbags along the river's edge just in case there is a flood. I checked the King County website and found that they placed the sand bags there a couple years ago where they will remain until roughly 2014. Great plan people. Or...hey...here's an idea.....don't build entire cities along a river that routinely FLOODS!

The trail was blocked

What is there to do when you come to a dead end and are forced to turn around than to strike a pose? Nothing that I can think of.

Oh, thaaaat's what she wears underneath

Pretty view of the traffic above and serene below. I love that kind of contrast.

Green green river

It's like a sign from the gods. Can you hear the angels singing? Okay, enough commentary. Just enjoy the pictures.

Soccer fans?

Two Bridge. Look at what I can do!

A little history? Get learned.

Three bridge

Show off! I can't do that.

Water district building I think. Kinda cool.

What a beautiful day!

There you go. No dead bodies. No helicopters. No news crews. And no paparazzi that I could spot in the bushes hoping for a money shot of Jenny. She really is a little full of herself lately but I don't care, I love her just as she is.

The next series of adventure photos will be posted shortly. Oh and it's going to be a good one too. Jenny and just did a nice long ride for charity in the rain. Stay tuned...

I want to know about your bicycle adventures.