Q&A with Carlee

From the feedback I've received thus far, it seems like you all have been enjoying this Questions and Answers series, so I'm going to continue it until you run out of questions to ask ;) [If you've missed the previous posts you can find them HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE. I'm loving the variety in the questions that have been asked. Keep 'em coming!]

How many half/ full marathons have you done?

As of today I have run 56 half marathons and 25 full marathons. I started running in 2012, so I guess you can decide if that's a lot or not ;) The breakdown of my half marathon tally is - 2012: 1, 2013: 6, 2014: 6, 2015: 10, 2016: 10, 2017: 7, 2018: 10 and 2019: 6. The breakdown of my full marathon tally is - 2014: 1, 2015: 4, 2016: 4, 2017: 5, 2018: 5 and 2019: 6. When I originally started running I said I would NEVER run a full... and, well, we all see how that went ;)

Do you want children?

The hubby and I do not want children. I've written about this a few times [2013: Choice About Children, 2014: Mother's Day for Non-Mothers, 2017: Natural Progression, 2018: A Woman's Choice - Is It Really?], but suffice it to say this is a decision that we have discussed long and hard. I knew since High School that I did not want children and I was lucky enough to find a boyfriend turned fiancé turned husband who felt similarly. Just because we do not want children of our own does not mean we hate kids (we just like ones that we can give back to their parents, hehe). We love our nephews and would take a bullet for our friends' children if ever it was necessary, but do not plan on bringing our own into the world.

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Top five books?

This is a toughie! I like so many different books for so many different reasons, but I guess if I'm being forced to whittle down my favorites I'd say (in no particular order): The Bible, The Handmaid's Tale, The Hunger Game Series (I know, I know, it's more than one book, but it's my list so you'll have to accept it ;)), The Power, To All The Boys I've Ever Loved Series (yup, another series, sorry ;)), Beartown, The Hate U Give, Love Does, To Kill A Mockingbird, The Nightingale, The Tattooist of Auschwitz, This Is How It Always Is, The Art of Racing in the Rain, Freakonomics and Let Your Mind Run. Okay, okay, so someone asked for my top five and I gave fifteen, but it was hard narrowing it down this far to the books I'd recommend. It really depends on the type of books you like and what you're looking for, but this is a jumping off point ;)

Planning any more tattoos? How many do you currently have?

Funny you should ask because the hubby and I were just discussing that once our No Spend November is done we will have to set up an appointment for our next tattoos (but you'll have to wait and see what the next one is ;)). I currently have 12. Stars on my lower back, the symbol for love on the top of my right foot and the symbol for joy on the top of my left foot, a heart (with my initials hidden in it) on my left wrist, a map of Michigan (with a banner that says "SMITTEN") on the inside of my left bicep, a semicolon on my right wrist, a banner of a Shakespeare quote ("though she be but little, she is fierce") on my right forearm, a swallow on my right shoulder, the hubby's name on my right ribs, a large cherry blossom tree covering most of my left lower back, an anchor on my left quad and a pineapple on my right calf.

Any plans for your next World Marathon Major or do you not care about the 6-Stars?

As I'm sure you've noticed, I'm "fairly frugal". International racing (or traveling in general) is not a cheap thing. Currently I have no plans to complete all six World Marathon Majors {Tokyo, London, Boston, Chicago, New York City, Berlin}, but am hoping next year I'll be able to run Chicago (which I have ran before {in 2017}) and New York City (I've already done Boston twice). {FYI: I'll be submitting a qualifying race for both of the time-qualifying systems rather than the lotteries.} The hubby hasn't been to either Chicago or New York City so we would be making mini vacations out of them if I get in. With that said, if you know someone who wants to pay my way to tackle any of the international races, pass along my info ;)

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And, there you have it, a handful of your questions with my honest to goodness answers. Hopefully you found some of the information interesting. I think this might be a fun series to continue, so as long as people keep supplying the questions, I’ll keep supplying the answers. Leave a question in the comments or reach out any of the social media platforms you follow me on (I should be @CarleeMcDot on all of them) and let me know what you've been dying to know about me.

Any questions you are dying to ask me?