I want to get away from here...

I don't think I really belong here. I can't think of one thing I truly love about living here. Shouldn't you love the place you live in? I like it, I just don't love it. Perhaps I moved here for the wrong reasons. I wonder if it'll ever feel like home...

SPF 100?

So I'm on a mission to find the best sunblock out there. The reason being that I tan very easily. I learned this when I lived in Arizona and would tan regardless of how high my sunblock's SPF was. The highest I found back then was SPF 45 and no matter how much I would apply on myself I would still tan. Granted I walked to school so I spent a lot of time outdoors. I always thought that the sun was just stronger in AZ and that was why nothing seemed to work very well. That is until I moved here.

As I've said before I like to go running at night but with my schedule that is not always possible. I sometimes work evenings which means that I have no choice but to go running in the daytime. Unfortunately this usually results in me acquiring more tan lines than I already have despite the fact that I always apply sunblock before heading out.

Originally I was using an SPF 30 spray-on sunblock. It's great because it's a mist so it's easy to apply everywhere without having to get your hands all greasy and you can apply it evenly throghout. I thought SPF 30 would be sufficient especially since I wasn't planning on spending too much time out there. However, it hardly does anything for me, even on cloudy days. Every time I go running in the daytime I end up with new tanlines. I have a couple of different ones on my shoulders and back because I have 2 different style tanks that I'll wear. I'm starting to look freakish so I decided to try to find a better sunblock.

The other day I went to Target and found a Coppertone 50 SPF spray-on sunblock. I was really excited because that's the highest SPF I've ever used. Surely this had to work, at least better than the 30. So I tested it today. I covered myself in sunblock and went for a 6 mile run. I couldn't wait to get home to see the results! But guess what? I still managed to tan! So now not only am I disappointed but I'm tanner than I want to be. :( I guess it's back to the Target sunblock aisle. If I don't find one that works I might have no choice but to start wearing long sleeves and pants.

Happy Ending!

So I took my water damaged ipod to the Apple store on Monday to see if there was anything they could do to bring it back to life. I thought all I had do is stop in and have them take a look but apparently you have to set up an appointment to meet with a "Mac Genius" so I did. Fortunately it was worth the wait. Of course I didn't say anything about the fact that my ipod got soaked in the rain. I pretty much just told them that it wouldn't turn on or charge so they tried charging it and needless to say, it didn't work. Then they checked my warranty status and it was still under warranty so they were able to issue me a replacement at no charge because it was still under the first 6 months which made me super happy! :) While I was there I purchased a skin cover for it which I had been meaning to do anyway and would have prevented the whole ordeal. I learned this is the best thing to do because apparently if you have any kind of dents or scratches on your ipod they will not issue you a replacement even if it is still under warranty.

Anyway, getting my ipod back really made my week. Now I can once again enjoy my favorite music when I'm out on the track! :D

Blame it on the rain

So yesterday evening I went out running, as I usually do, and after two miles it started to pour. Of course I had my ipod with me and needless to say it got wet. I tried protecting it from the rain but there really wasn't much I could do. I still had a mile to go and I ran as fast as I could but it was inevitable. I never bought the protective skin for it so it was totally vulnerable. After I got home it kept turning on and off on it's own and then today it won't even turn on at all. :( I'm giving it another day to dry up but I'm starting to think that it's officially dead. :( I read some online posts about wetting your ipod and it seems like the chances are 50/50 that it'll be ok but so far it doesn't look good. This is worse than when I wet and killed my Morotola V600. It's so depressing I could cry. :(

Changes...

Moving to a completely different place can be exciting because it presents you with the opportunity to re-invent yourself if that is what you choose. I didn't really seek to do so but I have definitely changed since I left NJ and not necessarily for the better. I mean, some changes have been good; I've started running pretty consistently and I'm eating better (I want to lose 20 pounds). However, I've also been drinking more than before. I definietely drank quite a bit when I lived in NJ because I would go out with my friends but that was really the only time I ever would so it was maybe once or twice a week at the most. I never really kept much (if any) liquor in my home because drinking alone never really appealed to me. Living here though has provided me with plenty of alone time which I have turned into an opportunity to mix drinks. I must say I can now make some pretty good martinis but I should probably stop drinking so consistently. I generally do it out of boredom, to get over a tough day or to take my mind off things. I guess the problem is that I do it more than once or twice a week. Not that I'm an alcoholic because I don't depend on it and I know I could never get to that point. It's just something I do and I know I really shouldn't.

Most recently I've also been shopping more than I should, again partly out of boredom but also to make myself feel better about things. Buying myself something I can't afford makes me feel good temporarily but ultimately makes me feel worse because I know it's not a wise choice. I guess I justify it because if everything else is going crappy why not make myself feel good even if it's on Visa? To make matters worse, living around here you tend to come across people that are pretty well off and buy nice things like it's no big deal. It kind of increases your desire to have expensive things too. I haven't bought myself anything outrageous or anything but it bothers me that I have charged a couple of things and I know better than that yet did it anyway. I'm afraid one day I'll go all out and spend a ridiculous amount of money I don't have like I did when I was younger.

I think Miami is killing me. ;)