is the universe TRI-ing to tell me something?

while i was in anaheim last week i noticed several women at disneyland with race markings in their arms and legs. i struck up a conversation with a woman at the pirates of the carribean gift shop and she was participating in her first sprint triathlon put on by Danskin. it was cool chatting with her and i could feel the old excitement kicking in and a little emotion welling up inside me as i said very matter of factly "you are going to have a great day out there."

i ran all of twice while on vacation but i looked for my athelete on the course the next day. the ladies were greeted with perfect weather conditions. a cool cloudy morning without a hint of the heat and humidity that would dominate the rest of the week. as i ran along Harbor blvd. i gave shouts out and words of encouragement to the cyclists and as i got closer to the park i ran along with several runners cheering them on like they were all my best friends.

a few months ago i ran into my old triclub coach Hae Won and she mentioned that the club was going to reunite with alumnae and train for an oly in june. this morning i registered for my 20k at Redwood (Sept 6th). that should leave me plenty of time to get ready. i'm not commiting to the oly event but man did i get worked up and nostalgic when i saw the athletes last sunday. oh i'm so excited to have something to train for again. even M said to me , "yeah mom, i'm glad you signed up for something, you've been so stressed out"

today i receieved an email from Hae Won inviting me to join the upcoming training. when i think about how excited i got last week about the danskin event it's really got me entertaining the idea. i think i'd be over stretching though given how little training i've actually done these past few monthes and the oly is only 2 mos away. i told Hae Won when i saw her that i'd definitely be interested in doing a few workouts with them. between running into Hae Won, the Dankins event and her recent invite i'm starting to suspect the universe might be giving me a nudge to TRI.

My Journey

Hi...long time no nothing i know. school has been out for a month and i just got back from disneyland. the first thing i did when i got home was check my grades. i got an A in anthropology and a B in Basic Math. i'm pleased with my grades but not so happy about the stress and physical deconditioning that occured as i tried to wrap my brain around fractions and the edward sapir theory. i decided to drop my summer pre-algebra and just focus on a few areas i neglected during the spring. so, i've pulled out the quilting and i'm looking for a nice 20k trail race to train for maybe PCT's Redwood around the end of august, not sure. it's been months since i've stepped foot on a dirt trail.
i'm still not sure what i want to accomplish by going back to school. i do know that i turned out to be a fairly good student. school this time around is more interesting and i can learn math. i just don't know if i can be a good mom, wife and employee simultaneously. people do it all the time but i really don't need to compare myself to them do i? i learned that i like taking classes and so i plan just take ones that appeal to me and keep the stress to a minimum for now.

Home Stretch

Anthropology is over, we met for the last time last Saturday and i feel confident that i did well, i really enjoyed it though some days the amount of reading and writing competed heavily with time i needed for math. now i just have to do well on my math final....good vibes totally needed:)

i just got back from a decent run. i felt good and strong and it got me in the right space to get cracking with my studies. as sporadic as my running has been I'm still able to run 5 miles with relative ease...slow but enjoyable.

going back to school has been both great and extremely hard. i never really found the balance and i failed to keep up with exercise and healthy habits many times along the way but something positive did come from all those setbacks. I just stopped beating myself up over it. i found myself on several occasions giving myself pep talks and just moving forward. challenging myself academically certainly played on my confidence and math could be compared to ripping off a scab and exposing myself to all sorts of discomfort. but still, I'm stubborn as hell and will get through this even if it kills me...figuratively speaking of course.

It's Getting Better All The Time

it's been awhile since i've pulled off running clothes soaked from solid effort or felt that distinct burn in my quads and calves. i ran 3 times this week and i am especially proud of the 4 miler i ran AFTER work on wednesday, which by the way is NOT sucking at all. i mentioned previously that i've been running for time as i haven't strapped on the garmin since training last year but i have a few favorite short routes that keep me in the 4 to 5 mile range.

i have serious studying to accomplish. T and M are off for their annual spring trek to Gardernerville, NV this weekend so i'll have uninterrupted hours on end to study. Math is still playing hard to get but i'm hanging in there and slowly but surely the evil bitch is coming around.

so yeah it's been awhile since i've strung 3 runs together in a weeks time ...could Gu and Body Glide be in my near future? T brought the racing bikes inside and their hanging from hooks in the laundry room making it ever so much easier to get up and go for a ride but that usually involves more time than i have these days but maybe if i really bust ass on the studying i could ride on sunday,we'll see.

i am so loving the weather right now, happy spring ya'll!

Back to square one

seems like i've been in restart mode for awhile now. school work and running on regular basis are a constant challenge. i run for time these days and the last time i ran was about 10 days ago. todays 40 minute run felt pretty good though i got a later start than i would've preferred.

our census in concord had been low and i was asked if i could help out in one of our marin facilities. after 3 days i asked to be considered for a full time position and once i had a talk with my concord manager the wheels were set in motion and i'll be working in san rafael full time after next week. woohoo!

the commute from berkeley is cake and i figure what i shell out in toll is more than made up for in what i save on gas. it's a smaller building and it's lacking in many of the basics but i really like the nursing staff and anyone who works in rehab can appreciate that.

we layed down the kitchen and laudry room flooring two weeks ago and the house still hasn't recovered. we reorganized quite few pieces of cabinetry and moved some other pieces of furniture around. the old couch was taken away and the new one is finished but waiting to be delivered from somewhere in virginia. T thought it would be a good idea to drag out a spare twin mattress in the meantime, personally i think it just exacerbates an already chaotic living space.

it's true what they say about it getting worse before it gets better.

i've been tagged

consideing what a blabber mouth i can be it's funny even to me that i can scarcely think of 7 things to share about myself
but i'll give it a go...

i'm often perceieved as as pushy and demanding.

ironically, people tell me all the time that i'm too sensitive and that i take things too personally.

i attended 2 grammar schools, 2 middle schools, 3 high schools,
1 allied health professional school, and 5 jr. colleges.

i served a mission in italy during my mormon phase..relatively short phased but enough to completely wreck my twentys.

i love my husband more today than when we were first married.

when i feel nervous or insecure i go for a run or do something active to regain my confidence and works every single time without fail.

i'm funnier in person than i am on my blog.

so there ya go, lame but true. now i need to wade through about a bazillion pages in my anthropology book.

Good Night Moon

Over the weekend M and I hauled out our bikes and rode for a good hour . i rode to class on Saturday, avoiding hills whenever i could. i got a couple of lights and reflectors today to ride at night but i have to admit preferring to drive while it's still chilly at night. maybe in the summer when it's lighter and warmer.

I supported girl scout cookies sales last week and brought home..hmm...8 boxes on Thursday....
I'm glad i took just 2 classes, it's a manageable load and i'm doing well in both classes so far. i could stagger my math study sessions better, but all in all it's going well.

I think i just need to face a few facts and not keep hoping for things to settle into any consistent routine. i have a few fixed items on my plate but so much else is random and feels out of my control.

i wanted to swim on Sunday, i felt too tired to run or ride after Saturday's little ride to class that had me huffing and puffing..so, i wanted to swim because i needed some thing restorative and when i found everything BUT my swim cap..that's when i decided to go for a bike ride with M...much to her dismay.

Let me just say this about life with a girly girl. yeah it's fun and i love me some pink.but i wish she was a tiny bit more like i was when i was her age...i liked girly stuff and bikes.....Plus, i wish she'd just get with the program already and not find it necessary every single time to protest and whine.

Needless to say it wasn't a really enjoyable ride but we managed to put in a whole hour. after we pumped up her tires we headed over to the bicycle bridge and rode around the fake lake there along highway 80. we rode around the "lake" once and then backtracked home. we rewarded ourselves with? that's right MORE GIRLSCOUT COOKIES. ok so not good in the nutrition dept. but i'll take a few points for the ride and for not losing my shit when she made it so easy to.

ok. im so going to regret staying up so late. but i'ts hard to go to sleep after my night class.

goodnight moon