a peek inside the fishbowl

Training continues for my two 5Ks. As I mentioned in this recent post, the first is happening on Sunday. I have been feeling a bit glum about the weather forecast for the coming days. At this point in time it looks like it will be rainy and 8° on Sunday. I can barely run in good weather! How and I supposed to deal with the rain? Sigh.

At Mark’s suggestion, I did a wee test run this morning, since the weather conditions are about the same as we’ll see on Sunday. I did a slow jog around the block and three-point-five minutes later I was back at home: with a wet jacket and pants and a soggy disposition overall. That being said, I am really trying hard to be optimistic about the whole thing. There is no failure here, only learning and growth.

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The highlight of my week: cupcake and coffee break with a friend at Cupcake Lounge in Westboro. Have you ever been? It’s a really nice place to hang out, and the cupcakes are perfection. Cake to icing ratio is critical, don’t you think?

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Awhile back I wrote a few posts inspired by Gretchen Rubin’s book, Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives. It has really stuck with me. Every day I’m in the habit of eating the same healthy breakfast (yay!), working on my book (yay!) and spending time on the treadmill (yay!). Other habits (eg. collapsing on the couch and spending too much time with Netflix) are not doing much for my health and general wellbeing, but I can accept that for now. You will find this strange and possibly hilarious, but one of the small habits I’ve picked up and am finding REALLY satisfying is…. punching our pillows.

Here’s where I have to ask: do you make your bed every morning? I have a checkered past in terms of bed making, and for the most part did not include this task in my morning routine. BUT THEN I started making the bed and, for extra emphasis, instead of fluffing the pillows a la June Cleaver I’ve been giving them a couple of good right hooks and a left. Perhaps I’m just channeling some extra energy or just getting out my frustrations, but it is immensely satisfying to walk away from a freshly made bed and punched-up, pummelled pillows.

I dare you to try it for a few days and report back.

p.s. don’t forget to enter this great giveaway from Mrs. Tiggy Winkle’s!

Happy Monday Fishies!
I am very happy to be sharing this fantastic giveaway from my friends at Mrs. Tiggy Winkle’s. As many of you know, Tiggy’s has been a Fishbowl patron for many moons. I’m VERY excited to let you know that THIS YEAR marks their 40th (!) as an independent toy store in Ottawa.

To celebrate, Mrs. Tiggy Winkle’s has a lot of great stuff planned:

• There will be a 40th Anniversary storewide sale between May 12-14.
• Each store is having a HUGE Birthday Party on Saturday May 13th. Drop by for giveaways, surprise visits from special guests, cupcakes, prizes, and more!
• If you don’t already follow Mrs. Tiggy Winkle’s on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram you will DEFINITELY want to follow them now because there will be exclusive giveaways leading up the big day.

I popped by the Westboro location last week to chat with the GM, Eira MacDonell, to see what’s new and cool in the store. First up, the Fidget Spinners. Fidget toys are a really hot item right now, they come in all shapes and sizes but little cubes seem to be more common. They’re designed to relieve stress and help people channel overflow energy.

Sidebar: While I was at the store I spoke to a mom whose son bites his nails in school. She bought him this spinner to help keep his hands busy doing something less destructive. Isn’t that a great idea?

I played with a bit and found it oddly satisfying. It’s well weighted, for starters, and it spins really well. (I hesitate posting this because they’re so popular that Eira wasn’t even sure if they’d have any left this week, so consider yourself warned!)

One thing I have always loved about Mrs. Tiggy Winkle’s is their dedication to classic toys that get kids playing outside: bubbles, air rockets, flying disks, balls, and of course, sand toys! So cheery and sweet:

And speaking of classic toys, the BRIO section of the store has been updated and the play table is as fun as ever. I think my kids spent many hours here while we shopped:

And HOO HOO do you think has some pretty cute plush in store too?

Of course, if you’re a Tiggy’s regular you already know that there is something here for folks of all ages. Why should kids get all the fun? If you like adult colouring books you will enjoy the adult connect-the-dot books they have in stock right now. Oh, and the Moleskin notebooks! I was eyeballing this bike phone holder because I’m planning a big bike ride this summer and I would love to keep a map in front of me while I go:

Me: I was eyeballing this bike phone holder because I’m planning a big bike ride this summer and I would love to keep a map in front of me while I go:

I haven’t even scratched the surface of what’s in the store: games, puzzles, LEGO, Playmobil, dolls! I will say this, if you haven’t been, YOU need to see it for yourself and Mrs. Tiggy Winkle’s birthday weekend is a great time to do it.

Here’s Eira, NOT freaking out about preparing for the big day:

She is actually very composed and calm yet thrilled and excited. After all, she has seen kids who played at the store grow up and come to work at the store. She loves the feeling of community, creativity, and play that the store inspires in everyone. I do too! That’s why I am especially pleased to host this anniversary giveaway with Mrs. Tiggy Winkle’s. They’re giving away one $100 gift card to one lucky person. Interested? Please read the following carefully:

• This giveaway is for one $100 gift card that will be given to one individual. It can be used during the sale or anytime afterward.
• In order for your entry to qualify, let me know how you would spend your winnings. I would also love to know if you have special memories of shopping at Mrs. Tiggy Winkle’s. Maybe the staff helped you find that perfect gift when you needed help? Or you found your family’s favourite board game after trying it out at the store? Tell me!
• One entry per email address, please!
• A BONUS second entry goes to folks who leave a comment on this Facebook post as well. Just make sure you come back and let me know in a second, separate, comment that you did so.
• This giveaway is void where prohibited by law.
• If you can’t post your comment for whatever reason you can email it to andrea at quietfish dot com. Please note, I cannot be responsible if your entry is misdirected or gets stuck in my Spam folder.
• I will draw the winning name using Random.org at 9 a.m. EST on May 8, 2017. I’ll contact the winner via email at that time and post the name here as well. If I don’t hear back within 24 hours of emailing I will pick another name.
• The winner will need to pick up the gift card at a Tiggy’s location of their choice in a timely manner.

Good luck!

My goodness, was I ever glad to see the end of this past week. Come Friday, I felt like I could lie down and sleep and sleep and sleep.

The eldest and I watched a fantastic film on Friday night called Starbuck. (You can watch the trailer here.) It’s a Canadian film, and it was a total delight. Essentially, it’s about a man who is a bit of a screw-up. Something befalls him – something really weird – and he decides to take the opportunity to take charge of his life in a really amazing kind of way.

I’ve really been enjoying the little bits of good weather we;ve been having (today’s misery notwithstanding). I’ve been puttering around the garden a bit and doing my best to encourage growth here and there. Want to know something funny? I’ve been finding my lost marbles and pretty stones, one at a time, every time I’m out in the garden. They’re almost always half-buried in the lawn or on the edge of a flowerbed. Damn squirrels! At least I am benefitting from their haphazard job. The weird thing is, I recognize my lost rocks when I see them.

I think part of the reason for my fatigue is that I’ve been training extra hard for my upcoming 5K. In fact, when I started training awhile back I didn’t realize there was to be a second 5K (!) in my near future and that it would be coming up much sooner than I had planned. Shopper’s Drug Mart invited me to participate in the Run for Women in support of the Women’s Mental Health Program at The Royal, and so I decided to take the plunge. I will write more about this event later (there is much more to it!), but for now I will say that I am being diligent about sticking to my training plan and faithfully doing my intervals.

Progress is slow, as you can imagine, but there is progress, which is satisfying. I just finished my week two intervals, which consists of a five-minute warm up and cool down, with 10 intervals of two-minute runs punctuated with one-minute walks in between. To my surprise, I did this three times this week and haven’t keeled over yet. It gives me hope. Next week I’m up to three-minute runs with one-minute walks.

Last week at the YMCA I decided to suck it up and try some of the weight stations. And you know, it’s not as bad as I thought.

A side benefit of all of this activity is that I am feeling stronger and somehow, a bit taller. I hope I can hold on to this momentum because I feel like it’s going somewhere really good.

Yesterday I decided to hop on my bike and go to Britannia Beach. It was a pretty nice ride, although the wind was howling around my ears and I found myself wishing for ear muffs.

This was the scene at the beach. The water levels are still quite high:

As I biked home again I spent a bit of time thinking about running v. cycling. I have come to the conclusion that I find cycling more enjoyable than running. Perhaps it is because it satisfies my attention span a little better. I do like that I can see more and get further in a much shorter time when I bike, whereas when I run, I suffer in slow-motion. I’m still waiting to get better at this running thing!