catching up...

So... maybe you have noticed my silence lately. Maybe you haven't. If not, then this post is not likely going to interest you too much, so may I recommend some alternative reading? Maybe you can plant a garden? Go do something productive.


For those of you who will be interested, I have come to explain myself. I have been silent because I am in a period of transition in my life, and it is a wild ride.

My last class ends next week. I have thirteen more days of considering myself a student, and that is a trip. I have been a student all my life. It will be really interesting trying to lose that as an identity marker. No, I didn't finish the degree. Joe's work benefits changed and we can no longer afford for me to pursue a degree I actually have to pay for... so that's that. I am done. I can't say I am that sad... lately it has started feeling more rote than intriguing, and I have been bothered by the need to balance my life with writing papers. I am ready to be done. But not ready to be done. I am so scared that no one will have anything interesting to say if they don't have to, if they are not motivated by a grade. People, generally speaking, don't like to think too much and thus leave me with a desperate need for intellectual intercourse which can never be filled. It is a sick, sad world we live in. I guess I will just have to become interested in the trend topics- the thou-shalt-nots of parenting, politics and religion (tedious, boring topics of which people are generally uninformed, misinformed or just too stupid to consider the many layers of complexity that they are trying to simplify into catch phrases or funny comments.)So, please, if you have an opinion, ANY opinion, on anything I post either here or on Facebook, I BEG YOU. Comment. Talk. Think. Please. Or I may just die a slow, slow death.

On the flip side, as one door closes, a few more open. I have been training for my first triathlon. Yup. You read that right. I, the slowest, least athletic person you know, am going to do a triathlon. Why? Because I can. Because if I can, you can. There is nothing special about me. I possess no special talent, no abundance of time, money, or resources. I am just a normal person. I want to do it, because I have seen my body do things which I thought were physically impossible. I know I can do it. I want to stop thinking about the somedays and the what-if's and start just making it happen.

It has helped, of course, that my amazing older sister and brother in law have paved the way by getting into the sport before me, so I can learn from their experience and expertise... and, if you are interested, I am willing to pass it all on.

Many people have said that our generation should be called Gen-Me, because we all feel like superstars, like we are entitled, like we deserve to be special. Well, it isn't true. It may be true that you can be anything you want to be, but you have to be willing to work for it. Not work hard for a week, month or year and then quit, but really work for it. Integrate effort and conscientiousness into your life.

So, to that end, it is my goal to complete a half Ironman. At this moment, I don't have any desire to do a full Ironman, because honestly I have seen the training and the sacrifice it takes and it just isn't that important to me right now. Maybe later on in life, but not now. A half, though, would be an amazing accomplishment.

I am doing a mini-tri in April, the Tri for the Cure. Then, in May, I am doing SheRox, presuming of course that I can gather the funds for the gear and the entrance fees (that disclaimer applies to all the races I have planned.) In June, an Olympic distance is on the schedule, a half marathon in December, the SheRox sprint distance again next May, Nathan's Olympic distance again next June, and then the Dueces Wild and Soma half distances next December.

See how that works? It is a slow, gradual build up in fitness and endurance. It is an easy training plan- no crash courses here! I work out for an hour a day- biking two, swimming two, running two. I do resistance training twice a week, pilates twice to three times a week, yoga three times a week, belly dancing and other fun stuff whenever I feel antsy.

So, the time I was spending in school is now spent working. It feels good. It relieves stress, anxiety, and gives me time alone. Time to think. Time to be in the moment. I am quickly falling in love with this sport.

Additionally, my sweet Daegan has started school in the 3 year old class! That means that on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays, I have four hours all to myself. No, wait... all to Logan. :P It feels weird, being with only one child. I forgot how easy it is to only have one.

So... if I don't write much, that is why. I am busy, but don't really presume that you are interested in reading about every footstep or lap that I take. I will, however, keep you updated on the general process when/if I have the coincidence of something to say and the time in which to say it.

If you have not heard from me, be warned: you may need to call me. Don't wait for me to call you, because right now, I am just trying to get into a routine so that the chaos settles down a bit.