Everyone needs one of these!

I went shopping with my sister-in-law and brother the other day ... for no reason other than I was getting bored with the clothes I currently have.

I was introduced to something pretty spectacular. I am not sure if any of you have seen these yet {it might just be a Logan thing} ... motorized shopping carts! That's right, you unload all the clothes you want to try on onto the motorized shopping cart and it follows you around as you continue to look for more clothes! I was so amazed by it, that I took a photo. 

This is the back view. And then here is the front view ...

Yes, yes ... I think I will take my brother with me every time I go shopping from now on! :) Who knew he was sooo handy?

The BEAST ...

Today I ran a 1/2 marathon with one of my favorite running buddies, Boo. And I guess by saying we "ran" it would be an exaggeration. We jogged it. I admit it, sometimes I jog. Our intention from the moment we even started contemplating running the 1/2 marathon was to run it slow. We had no desire to train on a regular basis to try and run it "fast." And, as previously mentioned, I have ran one day a week for over the past month. That's all.

In honor of the 13.1 miles, I will share 13.1 thoughts I had while running today:

1. There is no way I am running the marathon.

2. There is no way I am running the marathon.

3. I honestly will cry if Bernard Legat doesn't win the 5,000m in the Olympics tonight.

4. There is no way I am running the marathon.

5. I wish I was wearing my cute pink top that I had planned on wearing during the marathon.

6. There is no way I am running the marathon.

7. When am I going to be able to wear the cute pink top if I don't do the marathon?

8. There is no way I am running the marathon.

9. There is no way I am running the marathon.

10. There is no way I am running the marathon.

11. I really could put that fly on a leash and he could run the marathon {refer to the second poll question}.

12. There is no way I am running the marathon.

13. I wonder if I can talk my parents into taking me to lunch.

13.1. Marathon is out. Definitely. Forever.

And here is the only photo I have from the race, conveniently enough, actually after I finished. Uhm, I really like to sit down after I run. :)

Two golden stars to all who can guess what I am thinking this very moment {you will find a hint above}. :)

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I realized something today ... I've been running road races since I was in fourth-grade, ran in high school, and ran in college {all of which have occurred primarily in/around Logan, UT}. For as long as I can remember, when I have gone to races, people make comments to me. One from today, "You won't remember me, but I watched you break the course record at the Shamrock Shuffle ..." The comments come from people I know, people who look familiar, and like today, complete strangers. But these aren't the only types of comments I received ... The following were actually said to me: From an old man who is a complete stranger, "Wow! I never expected to see you this far back!" and from someone I knew, "I BEAT YOU! I ACTUALLY BEAT MINDY THORNLEY!!" The realization was this: I get at least one comment like this in every race I don't win. Two comments to all the people who have ever made comments like this to me: 1. Sometimes, I don't run fast. Sometimes it's intentionally and of course there are sometimes it's not. 2. I don't analyze your ever perceived success or failure in running, please don't analyze mine. kthanksbye. :)

Letters ...

Olympics have taken over my life.

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Dear Kobe Bryant:

Seriously? You speak Spanish and Italian? How? Where? Why?

____

Dear NBC:

Thank you for showing all two hours and twenty-seven minutes of the women's marathon. I think that is the first time that has happened. Ever. In the entire universe. Yes, I did fast-forward through parts {shocking, as an avid runner}, but I appreciate your effort nonetheless.

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Dear Tyson Gay:

I hurt my hamstring once too, so I know how you feel. Given, I wasn't performing at the Olympics, being an actual contender for a medal ... but I just didn't want you to feel like you were alone ... and clearly you're not because our hamstring injuries are so similar.

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Dear Usain Bolt:

Things I can do under 9.69 seconds ... Scratch my head, blink my eyes, swallow a piece of gum, and push the scan button in my car. You on the other hand, you ... you jog your way to a WORLD record. Congratulations.

P.S. You're tall.

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Dear Deana Kastor:

Never in my life have I ever heard more poetic words than what you said before your marathon, "The human body was not meant to run 26.2 miles."

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Dear Michael Phelps:

On behalf of the entire world, I would like to thank you for not shaving your eyebrows to become more aerodynamic. Annnd, I want to add you as a friend on Facebook, but I won't.

P.S. You have earned more Olympic gold medals in the past week than every country except the United States, China, Great Britain, and Germany.

Sincerely,

Mindy M. Thornley

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On a random side note, I now want to quote one of my bestest friends on the planet, Amber Mae Jensen Ogivlie. When I informed her I have been running four times in the past eighteen days she said, "Mindy, you're not training for a marathon, you're just going to run one." Yeah, my marathon training went down the toilet about three weeks ago for no apparent reason other than I simply got bored running that far alone. YET: I still plan on running the marathon. :)

Why not?

The RULES

1. Link the person who tagged you... Toni

2. Post these rules.

3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours.

4. Tag 6 fellow bloggers.

As if you all didn't think I was weird enough already ...

1. Counter tops. I think counter tops should be cleared off, always. The counter top is not a home for toasters, blenders, nor mail. Everything should have its own spot in a cupboard or drawer. The only thing I can really stand on the counter top is maybe a land line phone. Everything else should be "put away" when you are not using it.

2. Skittles. For as long as I can remember, I have followed a specific pattern while eating Skittles. I separate all the colors into piles, except for the green and yellow {they go together}. First you eat the green and yellow ones at the same time, then you eat the orange, followed by the purple ones ... and finally, saving the best for last: you eat all the reds. I have never ate my Skittles in any other order.

3. Happy Time! In high school I set my watch to beep every 37 minutes {every day, throughout the entire day}. When the watch would beep, it meant it was happy time and everyone within the sound of the beep had to smile. I did this because I heard in my health class that the simple of act of smiling can make one happier because it can release endorphins or something-another. All classmates and teachers were aware of this and many would participate. I've considered bringing happy time back for work ... but just haven't gotten around to it.

4. Sleeping. I have issues sleeping. I rarely fall into a deep sleep. The sleep I usually am in, I can hear everything that is going on around me. I can repeat full conversations I overheard while I was sleeping. It can take me up to two hours to fall asleep, I wake up several times during the night, and only about once a month do I actually wake up to my alarm {the rest of the time I just wake up on my own and wait for it to be time to get out of bed}. And sleeping in beds that aren't my own make it even worse. The only other place I can sleep somewhat normal is at my friend's house in New Mexico.

5. Music. I have two problems with how I listen to music. The first one is that I am obsessed with the scan button in the car. Many times, I hop into my car, push the scan button, head to Provo, and never stop the scan button the entire 120 mile trip. I doubt I could ever buy a car without a scan button. Secondly, if I am not scanning, I am probably listening to the same song over and over and over and over and over and over and over. I put a song I love on repeat ... on my iPod while running, at work, in the car, at my computer at home, repeat - all day - every day for days on end.

6. Inboxes. I hate inboxes that are filled with old e-mails/texts etc. I delete almost every e-mail the minute after I read it. I hate having my e-mail inbox filled. Actually, I hate any of the folders to have excess items in them. So immediately after deleting the mail, I go to the trash folder and delete them permanently. The same thing goes for my phone. I delete all sent texts almost immediately after sending them as well as all incoming texts. It drives me insane to have them just "sitting" there. In college, one of my teammates and I always checked our e-mail together. He would never delete anything and it drove me NUTS! I informed him of this on many occasions and he eventually gave me his password so I could clean out his inbox too ... truth be told, the boy has been married for probably five years and I sometimes still clean out his inbox!! I would love to clean out yours too! :)

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Okay, now I get to command six people to do this ... I am going to pick out five whom I really, really think will do it and then one who probably won't. Guess the one that I think won't and I'll give you a golden star! :) 

Uhm, Rhonda, Sister Allred, the Keiths {you two count as one}, Michael Brian Lundberg, Lida, and Chance!