Day 16 - 5K

Today was a quick run - 5K. I had a lot of work to get done before meeting with my friend Savalle. I met Savalle through Steve 2.5 years ago. She is married to one of Steve's best friends, Turnell. Steve, Savalle, and Turnell met at Syracuse so they have known each other for 20 years.

Savalle and Turnell have 3 kids under the age of 7 - FULL HOUSE! I admire both of them for juggling successful careers and managing a growing family. Savalle scheduled spa appts for the us yesterday. It was much needed! I haven't had a facial in ages. I was ashamed to even admit the last time I went in for a facial. It has been over a year :( The aesthetician asked me, "Hmmm, what face products are you using?" Now this part is even worse. I used to be all about buying products and taking care of my skin. Then one time I ran out of products when I was away on a work trip. I meant to buy my typical stash when I got home but I didn't get a chance to. That was 6 months ago. My new beauty routine is to wash my face with the "face soap" in hotels and the moisturizer that hotels give you. I also use the shampoo/conditioner in hotels. I just hate packing stuff every week and I hate checking bags so this eliminates large bottles that I can't take through security. Yes, all at the expense of taking good care of my skin. So I was honest with the aesthetician. She just responded with, "hmmmmm. okay. when we're done here, I will give you a list of suggested items to purchase." She gave me a list and I didn't buy any of it. I like to try/test products out before I make my purchases. So ladies, feel free to chime in with your best beauty tips.

After my facial and Savalle's massage, we went across the street to Coastal Flats. Coastal Flats is part of a restaurant group known as Great American Restaurants. My favorite group of restaurants in Virginia. Great food! I have tried pretty much everything on their menus and it's all fabulous. They also have the best rolls known as ozzie rolls. Each time I dine at these restaurants, I order 2 baskets of them and tell them to eliminate the other breads they put in there. I learned that from Shawna and Jim Dillon. I used to ask for more bread and they would bring me the variety basket. Now I know I can just ask for OZZIES ONLY. I love a good insider food tip.

Anyways, our meal was great and it was topped off by a great conversation. Again, my favorite things: EAT. TALK. LAUGH. She was talking to me about a work situation and I was sharing my experiences about a similar situation. It was neat to hear her perspective coming from an executive point of view. The funny thing is that no matter what position you hold in a company, the issues you face are the same..... communicating effectively with people, getting results, trusting people on your team, recruiting good people, and the comical colleagues that have no common decency....ALL THE SAME NO MATTER WHERE YOU WORK OR WHAT POSITION YOU HOLD. Anyways, a great time with Savalle! Afterwards, I left to meet up with Steve.

Steve and I had a lot of errands to run. He needed to get a new phone. Done. We needed a new printer. Done. He also needed new dress shoes. Not Done Yet. He has small elf feet - size 7 so they were out of his size. He was probably happy though. Steve hates spending money. Let me clarify... He will spend money on vacations, he will treat our friends and family out to dinner, and he will invest or save the rest of his money. He doesn't get a high off of material things. He will give nice presents to the rest of us but doesn't spend anything on himself. It drives me crazy. During the 2.5 years that we have been together, he has not bought a single piece of clothing. He has a bunch of new clothes because I buy it for him. If I didn't buy it for him, he would be wearing jorts and silk button down shirts from the late 90s. I have now thrown these away. See how much value I bring to his life? Anyways, we ordered his shoes for him at the store. He still didn't purchase them yet because he's not sure if he "really needs them." I'll be going in there next week to buy them when they come in or else he will be wearing the same old shoes for another year.

Things I'm grateful for....

1. Great hanging out with Savalle 1 on 1. This was our first time doing this. We usually hang out with the kids and the guys but it was good to just have girl time. We definitely have a lot in common. We take pride in our jobs and we strive to accomplish new things in our careers. We also love clothes and purses. We went to the Kanye-Jay Z concert with the guys a few months ago. We sat together checking out dresses and laptop bags on our phones during the entire concert. We also love traveling for fun and not business. She does quite a bit of business travel too but she gets to go on international biz trips - jealous. We also get a high off of our traveling rewards status. We earned our miles so we get the perks of skipping long security lines, priority seating, seating upgrades, etc. She mentioned that she almost lost her premier status for 2012 because she was 2000 miles short for 2011. She found a reason to go on a biz trip in Dec that was a little over 2000 miles to retain her status for 2012. I totally understand where she is coming from. I will fly out of Baltimore sometimes for the same reasons. It's always fun to meet new people that share similar quirks :)

2. The glow that I get from a facial. I wish I could look like this everyday.

3. I ate the last 2 salted caramel cupcakes last night. Steve didn't eat any of the four I bought. I figured I needed to get them out of the house so I ate them. I did it Sloth style too .... I ate them in bed. Steve looked at me and said, "I thought you were only allowed to eat in bed if you're sick?" I make my own eating rules, Steve.