Work hard, play hard

This weekend, "working hard" consisted of taking part in the annual Bridge to Bridge run in San Francisco, and "playing hard" consisted of watching an America's Next Top Model mini-marathon with Sara and emptying my bank account at Anthropologie with Abbey. Hee. It was an action-packed weekend.

It's inappropriate, I suppose, to describe a leisurely run along San Francisco's coastline as "work". The sun was out, the air was crisp, and there was no fog to obscure the gorgeous views of the bay that Sar and I were treated to as we made our way from the Bay Bridge to the Golden Gate. It was much fairer weather than last year, when my friends Corey and Darren and I made our way through 7 miles of drizzle and fog to the finish line, where we spent the next 45 minutes chilled to the bone awaiting the shuttle that would take us back to the starting line and the glorious warmth of our car.

While I didn't run a marathon, I did do two mini-marathons: ANTM and shopping.

ANTM is a guilty pleasure that allows viewers to remorselessly mock girls who are overly concerned about their personal style and appearance. However, even as I mock, I grow fond of some of the self-involved lassies. I was sad to see Ebony go this week. She had a lot of flair, and the potential for some hilarious catchphrases (see, e.g., "I'm a forest fire, Tyra").

Shopping is another guilty pleasure, but one that arguably has value, as it prevents me from going to work in tattered rags befitting Oliver Twist. Abbey and I experienced extreme success at Anthropologie, to my glee. She is an excellent shopping companion, able to ask the right questions ("what would you wear that matches this?" and "do you really want to look like you're in your second trimester?"), be appropriately thrilled when a pair of pants flatter your backside, and justify irrational or expensive purchases if she knows you really want them. The hallmarks of any good friend: support and rationalization.