Monday, November 7, 2011

Recap of Border States

Tom and I left Tucson on Thursday afternoon after sending The Princess off to school, straightening up the house, and packing up the last of our stuff. We were heading to Yuma to stay overnight with my sister-in-law Crystal. It was nice to stop at her place, hang out, and just rest a little bit before finishing the last leg of our drive. One thing I can tell you about road trips while getting ready for a show - lots of eating cold food out of Ziploc bags. Oh....and quite a few potty breaks...it's amazing how my hatred for public restrooms disappears days before a show :)

Meal #3 out of a Ziploc?  Don't mind if I do


On Friday, we stopped at the Viejas Outlets in Alpine, CA. I love that we weren't in a rush to get to San Diego and could stop because I whined made a comment about needing to stop at the Coach & Nike outlets. Tom, being a very smart man, stopped at the outlets after purchasing a bag of large Hass avocados from a roadside booth for $5. It's the little things that make us happy....avocados for him....$4.79 Nike running shorts for me!



We reached the hotel about 2 hours before the athlete's meeting so I had time to start laying my stuff out for the next day and have another coat of tanner applied. The Doubletree Hotel that we stayed at was gorgeous! Did you know that when you check into a Doubletree, they give you a free freshly baked chocolate chip cookie?? Yea, I almost flipped out when the man at the counter tried to hand me the cookie...I wanted to scream "Damn it, man!!! I'm one day out from my show! Get that f#%king thing away from me!!!" but I didn't and Tom saved everyone from an awkward violent encounter by quickly grabbing the cookies and hiding them :)

Doubletree Hotel San Diego-Mission Valley, CA - King Bed Guest Room
source
Our room looked similar to this.

The athlete's meeting went well, a bit slow, but it was a smooth process. I had a chance to stop at my friend Kayla's room and pick her up so we hung out at the meeting together. Kayla and I meet last November at the check in for a NPC show we were doing so we both commented on how differently we were behaving at the CA check in versus the AZ check in :)


Show day arrived and I took a quick walk on the treadmill in the fitness center before having my first meal. A check of the physique by Tom was met with a thumbs up despite an inner nagging feeling that I was still holding water from my period and I was too soft. I threw on my suit, grabbed my bag, and we were off!

Figure was at the beginning of the show so it was time to hit the stage before I knew it. As we lined up, I got a little jittery but walked out & hit my poses!






After pre-judging, Tom & I went to grab some lunch and headed back to the hotel for a nap. Finals seemed to take F-O-R-E-V-E-R but the plus side was meeting Rosalind Vanterpool!! By the time figure awards were being given out it was almost 10:00 pm and I just wanted to eat! I wasn't shocked by receiving 5th place but I do wish I had done better. 




Me (5th) and Kayla (1st)

My post-show meal was a black & bleu cheeseburger and beer from the Tilted Kilt - it was freakin' awesome! The next morning, I finally ate the free chocolate chip cookie and we went exploring San Diego a bit. We had an incredible breakfast at Old Townhouse, waffle ice cream sandwich sundae (cookie dough ice cream sandwiched between two hot belgian waffles topped with melted Nutella, whipped cream, roasted almonds, and a cherry) from Lighthouse Ice Cream, and beers & football at The Arizona Cafe. I think I might love San Diego & Ocean Beach :)


I ate the free cookie!!!






I'm going to save the commentary about my feelings about the judges' feedback, competing in 3 shows this year, and what's next on the agenda for another post. My pictures from the show's photographer can be found here and I will be posting additional pictures on my facebook. I'm off to eat another piece of chocolate and have a glass of bubbly....don't judge me.... :)

10 comments:

  1. CONGRATS again lady! I love your physique so so much. Cant wait to hear all your thoughts and feelings!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Awesome job! You continue to inspire me as I am recovering from completing my first Primal Mud run... :) I've got the goal to increase my upper body strength so I can cut my time in half next year. I know you will get better!

    ReplyDelete
  3. congrats on top 5 T!!!!
    i have a feeling i already know what your thoughts and opinions are on feedback and future plans,
    but i am really looking forward to that post!!!
    :D
    i am so proud of you and your accomplishmenets in the past year girl!
    you are such a strong,beautiful,fiercly dedicated,super inspiring,amzingly awesome individual!
    good things are headed your way!
    enjoy your first ever "off season" if that ever really exsist,enjoy some R&R time with your family,enjoy the the quickly approaching holiday season...(and lots of "real" food!!!!)
    and just know that all of us here in blogland think you are awesome!!!!

    *****hugs******

    ReplyDelete
  4. Congrats lady! So proud of you. Three shows is hard to keep it up for. Best of luck with all you future adventures!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Regardless of how you finished, you are STUNNING! Tom is a lucky man ;) I hope you're savouring every bite of all your awesome food!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Wow, Tenecia! Love all the pictures. You are absolutely stunning and your dedication is so inspiring! I am so happy for you and proud for you and hope you are enjoying every bite of chocolate! I look forward to reading what's next!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I am so glad you ate that free cookie. I think I was going to have to virtually slap you if you hadn't.
    I am so proud of you and think you are such a rock star for competing so much this year! You looked incredible at each one! I mean, I've prepped twice and still havent' got to the stage! Can't wait to hear of your upcoming plans!

    ReplyDelete
  8. you seriously look so incredible! wow, wow, wow! you worked so hard, you deserved all the sweets you could get your hands on! congrats Mrs Thang!!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. No judging here lady! Enjoy your off season like the champ that you are. I can't wait to hear what the judges have to say and your views on competing 3 times in one year and it being your FIRST year of competing. :D

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hey! Congrats on top 5! No judging here either! You looked great! I'm still 9 days out and you had my drooling over my keyboard talking about the yummy breakfast you had!

    ReplyDelete