Tuesday, June 26, 2007

back and forth

Well after a week long traveling bunch of fun, i'm back to MA...with just a few short weeks til I move. What will happen in that time is too soon to tell...but there is a lot of chaos headed toward me. AND...drumroll please... i WILL actually be doing a tri this summer. Here's the really cool part...I talked a friend of mine into doing his first tri. Getting new people into this sport is always so much fun. And I have a new tri training buddy which is great too. Back to open water swimming for the summer. More on that on a later post.

Anyway...the last week was awesome even though it involved a lot of flying and a lot of driving. I flew to Seattle to meet up with a friend of mine, hang out for a day and then hit the road and drive to Montana for a good friend of our's wedding. So the night before my friend JT and I hit the road, we were discussing travel plans for the trip. I was supposed to be there by 5pm as I was going to be in part of the wedding and was suppose to be at the rehearsal at the church.

Um, yea.

The night before me, JT, her husband, and I discuss the trip....how long it'd take...bla, bla, bla. So we set up...decided on a start time between 7 and 730am as we thought that would get us there right darn close to when I needed to be there...and we could help with decorating the church.

Over half way to MT we find a nice place for lunch. I've taken a bite out of my sandwich when JT looks at me and says:
"OH CRAP"
i look puzzled
she says "timechange"
me: "hmmm??" thinking, thinking thinking....ARG! The three of us the night before had neglected the time change and now we were an hour LATE...not *just* on time to the rehearsal. ARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGG!! (but funny that the three of us could not catch it).

In the end we made it to the church...not on time...but found out what I needed to know for the wedding the next day and all was well.

The trip out was beautiful. I'm from idaho originally and have spent a good deal of my life in the Pacific Northwest, so while parts of the trip were new...it was still so familiar to me at the same time. Sigh.

The hills were beautiful...we weren't in quite the right places for the BIG mountains, but it was still The West, and breath taking. (Although Benson said that Montana had covered wagons...in my long, long drive...no covered wagons. Ahem...did I miss something? :-))

The wedding was fun over all. And not surprisingly some of my normal silliness surfaced...

On the way back we needed a stop in Coeur D'Alene and what did we just take a rest break in the middle of....but Ironman CDA. I waved at the Ironman bikers who where zooming by. I quickly cheered, but then we had to get going.

After a rediculous amount of driving and flying...I made it back. I am looking forward to the tri i'm doing mid july...and i knowing that this insane chapter in my life is coming to a close soon enough...soon enough....

Friday, June 08, 2007

less ranting...more training...

My personal ranting in my life in response to monday has subsided a little bit. Which is good...it has allowed me to get what needs to be done, well, done. This event has also encouraged more running...so Wed and Thursday I ran 6 miles each day. I liked that. But i'm now I'm in need of some yoga.

I found some weekly 5K cross country races on Monday and Thursday...3 dollar entry sort of deal that i may start doing . AND I found a place not too far away that does a sprint Tri every other week for a mere 15 dollars on Thursday nights! (although that might be a disaster considering my minimal training) I think i'm going to have to start training so I can check that out...otherwise I may not race at all til after I move to S.Cali at the rate i'm going this summer. But it seems these days that I tend to dream more about what I think *might* be possible with my time, instead of realizing...that I don't really have the time I think that I do. I can pretend...right? I find some enjoyment with just dreaming that I have the time to enjoy them, rather than dealing with reality that i don't really have that luxury...but a girl can pretend. It helps keep me happier.

But over the past few days as I've been out on my wonderful runs, i've been thinking about some of my long term (over the next few years) sorts of Tri goals. I have noticed that my thinking has changed a lot...it's a bit strange...and amazingly liberating too. That's a later post, I'm sure.

So the new perspective i'm attempting to hold is...less ranting...more training...

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Lemonade...


"When Life Gives you Lemons...make some...Lemonade".

I went for a run this morning...an amazing 6 miles. Don't know what got into me. But keep your eyes here...i think you will actually see some more of that.

So while i'm out running...i was thinking of that stupid saying about making lemonade...because Life handed me some Lemons on Monday...and you know what I think...i DON'T think you should make Lemonade out of them. To me...that's a passive thing to do when crappy things happen. Instead...take those Lemons and go play baseball with them. Or THROW.THEM.BACK. I like the latter one personally. Once I gather myself in one piece...I say...PLAY BALL.

I have learned (and am learning)an extreme amount from this Lemon experience. I thought about the fact that sometimes when we achieve our goal straight out...it is a learning experience, but not always the richest. I'm not saying don't "go for it"...or give it your all...or press on... Missing the goal isn't really the only point...it's how you go AFTER the goal...and what you do that makes you ache and want the goal. But sometimes the wheels fall off. Sometimes the preparation you thought was sufficient leaves you wanting. It's in the midst of things going poorly in a situation that we have no control of the only thing that can be done is to take stock in what is important and discover a new facet of who we are. It becomes more important to realize the result is what it is and to learn that picking up the pieces has as much value (if not more), than pushing through and achieving the goal the first time. I am absolutely advocating to prepare, to toe the line, to work one's butt off, to dream, to pursue, to PRESS IN and PRESS ON...but sometimes the result is still a little bitter because it is not what we wanted. (sometimes it's more than a little bitter tasting)...but it does have value...and sometimes that lesson has more value than I give missed goals credit for.

When life hands a Lemon...it's ok to be angry for a minute...but ultimately...

PLAY BALL

Tuesday, June 05, 2007

rough day

i had a rough day yesterday...and if these thunderstorms would STOP...i might be able to get my run on which would help me a lot.

i need to get my run on...PUUULEESSE stop.


by the way...in case you weren't aware...people are insane...and many more than you think should be locked away.

where is the paddy wagon for those that escaped the looney bin? I know a few that really shouldn't be a part of functioning society.