This is how I "Embrace It".

Holidays
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Snow; beauty...yay!








Holidays
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Snow which turns to ice and clogs the gutters of my apartment building and then starts melting and draining into my apartment instead; hell.

NOTE: These are not actual pictures of my place but they're pretty darn close!...and the smell...

Happy New Year! Ugh.

2009

It’s the 15th of December and I thought now would be a good time to think (or start thinking) of new years’ resolutions. Last year I had taken a hiatus from resolving anything except to remember the idea that I could resolve to do anything any time of the year. This thinking probably stems from the fact that I procrastinated and I had no idea what I should resolve to do until after the year had already started. So maybe my first should be to not procrastinate?

Nah.

I’ll deal with that one later.

“Resolutions lack the required preparation: Resolutions are usually made while thinking about what you would like to change, but forgetting to think about how you are going to go about that change.
Making changes requires preparation, work, patience, stamina and discipline to succeed. If you don't conduct the initial research and preparations on how you are going to make the resolution succeed, there is a very good chance you'll never achieve it. Most New Year's resolutions are simply statements or wishes made without any planning.“

That said, lets plan!

I’ve stolen the below resolutions. I like them because they aren’t your typical “lose-weight-save-money-be-nicer-to-your-family” resolutions. And while I’m at it, why don’t I change the word “resolution” to “reminder”?

These are my New Years' Reminders:

1. To feel grateful for what I have, to appreciate my blessings, instead of punishing myself by focusing on lack (physically, mentally, spiritually or materialistically)

2. To feel grateful for my present challenges, which give me the opportunity to grow into my greater potential to handle them. (Which is another way of saying “Embrace It”!)

3. Eat well, exercise sufficiently, get enough rest because when I feel my best, I do my best, and that produces the best results. (Don’t give up what you want most, for what you want at the moment! I really like this quote apparently)

4. Maintain neat, clean orderly environments because a cluttered space generates frustration and opposition. (A cluttered desk equals a cluttered mind. -Albert Einstein)

5. Remain vigilant of how I THINK about my situation, based on my understanding that I bring about what I think about. (Positive thinking)

Extra credit: I will review these resolutions regularly, post them where I can see them, and remain committed to putting them into practice little-by-little, day by day.

It took a fair amount of restraint to keep from mocking the whole idea of resolutions. I believe in the betterment of our selves but I don't necessarily agree with jumping on the once-a-year bandwagon of setting oneself up for failure....

Gotta love Calvin.

FOR THE LOVE....

OF RUNNING!

Roger needs to know he shouldn't videotape me running. I look like I'm on drugs.

Seriously. I never, ever, ever thought I'd ever say that I enjoyed running. I played volleyball and softball and was a cheerleader in high school all (in some part) because I hated running and those (aside from golf) were the best chances I had to avoid running and still be involved in something!

And how did this happen? Two women asked me if I'd like to try my first Triathlon 3 1/2 years ago.

Cheryl and Kathi...and my nearly 200 lb self with a white cap. If you didn't already know, I felt like a huge inflammed pimple...red with a whitehead. ick.

ValleyGirl 2005 was my first Tri ever. I had never done an open water swim, I had never ran 3+ consecutive miles (and I could only pull a 12 min. mile at best), and who the hell decides to ride their mountain bike 12+ miles when they've never gone more than 3? I thought I was fit "enough" to pull through it unscathed...ha...if I only knew then what I know now!

Now, I am surrounded by a great team that gives great opportunities for improvement and encourages me in every step of the way. I love it!

Turkey Trot 2008. I remember last year Steve gave me the compliment of keeping a good pace. Little did he know I was dying! This year? No near death experiences!

I think it's safe to say we're a really good-looking bunch!

A few of us with Kevin Longmeier in the middle. What a great day! Thanks, everyone!

Fall Fiasco 2008

Fall Fiasco is just that...a weekend of craziness!

High schoolers + mud and wetness= amazing times!

November 7-9th I was able to hang out with a few girls and guys from Medical Lake Younglife as well as the surrounding areas for our fall camp at Riverview Bible Camp. First, I love this place! It's gorgeous! Second, I love the chance to get "away" and be crazy with some of the coolest kids from our club. So here are some pictures, mostly from the girls' freetime on Saturday.

Girl talk before club

My partner in crime, Krista

Jaydra, Cassie and I

Part of our photo shoot...I really don't know

Our classy gentlemen...I don't know who the 3 dudes on the right are though...?

They treated us well with the grub! Here we have spaghetti, meatballs, salad, garlic bread and yummy strawberry shortcake!

Krista and I taking a break from the photo shoot

I wish this was in color! So pretty! The leaves were so bright...what a great weekend!

nothing better

There's nothing better than procrastination. Except when you're procrastinating getting the one thing done at work that isn't even work related. Then, you see, I'm here posting on my lovely blog about procrastinating about things not work related while at work. What an insane cycle.

Here' s what I'm dragging my feet on:

THE BIBLE.

About every 6 weeks or so I get the opportunity to speak in front of 40-50 too-cool-for-school teenagers at our weekly Younglife club held in Medical Lake. Seems easy enough....or not. High schoolers are scary! I've thought that for the entire 8 years I've been leading Younglife there! I cannot get over it! I'm supposed to somehow take a story of mine, turn it into something funny or at least halfway interesting, add a story about this awesome guy named Jesus and bring it all together to make a point. I'm supposed to put it into words that "they can understand" which usually means leaving the KJV Bible at home...who really understands a book full of "thous" and "shalts" and "wilsts" anyway? And then I'm supposed to pray and end the night without puking on my shoes.

I remember coming to Younglife when I was in high school and I can honestly say that I don't remember one single complete message given by any of my leaders (there was this one time when one of my teachers demonstrated milking a cow. I still have no idea what this had to do with Jesus though). This comforts me...in a way. If my topic of choice stinks, then they won't remember...but what about the Jesus part? It's been said "It's a sin to bore a child with the Gospel" so then what in the world am I thinking being okay with them forgetting what I have to say?

Now that I've convinced myself this thing needs my full attention, I should get to work. And then I should get to work-work...you know, what I'm actually in the office and getting paid for.

Don't get me wrong, they're not ALL scary!

The "EH" Team

This is to Tiffany, Jessi, Steve and Tim...

Halloween

Q: What does a pirate put up his (her) sleeve?








A: Her AAARRRRRRRRRRRM!

Some stuff....

Where has the time gone?

I was informed by Jen that I needed to update my blog...and she's right, I do!

I've done a bunch of stuff since I last posted but I've misplaced my memory! OK not really but you have to understand that since I only update this at work I don't have the capability to give my full attention...so here's my best!

I conquered the Hiawatha Trail again this year. Only this time we waited until the very last weekend to do so.

We drove my friend's clunky old Dodge van (with no working heater) to the bottom of the trail. This turned out to be quite an adventure in itself since we had never driven this route before and it took waaaaaay longer to get there than it should have (in my mind). But the drive was gorgeous! Bright yellow and red trees nestled right in the pines lining small creeks and streams.

My company on this adventure consisted of an old friend, Chaser (Allison), who is currently the assistant EWU women's basketball coach which means EVERYTHING is met with excitment and encouragement (ie: this is AWESOME!!!) and Cheryl, my mentor and 60 something year old buddy who sometimes forgets she's 60 something (which is really AWESOME!!!).

Fun notes: *Cheryl fell within the first 10 feet. She wasn't quite familiar with how stirrups work.

*Cheryl also fell in one of the tunnels...apparently her equilibrium goes haywire in dark places. BUT IT WAS THE FUNNIEST THING I EVER HEARD! We couldn't see her but we sure heard her bite it!

*Cheryl decided halfway up that she was done with the incline and she'd take a nap where she was and we'd meet her on the way back.

*While in the mile-long tunnel, a storm decided to roll in. By the time we made it out the other end, it was a straight downpour!

*On the venture back down the trail (in the downpour) Chase and I shouted songs like "Livin' on a Prayer" and "You Can't Touch This"...the rain sucked but the humor of it all made us through.

*Cheryl did not wait for us where we left her (smart lady).

We got back to the van soaked and frozen, only to suffer a 2 hour journey back home soaked and frozen in the van with no heater. WE ARE FREAKIN' ROCK STARS!

So I'll be leaving the office in 20 minutes and I should probably work a few of those...so this is it until next time!

MS 150

Two weekends ago, my co-workers and I took part in the MS 150 on the Trail of the CD'A's (75 miles each day). Since the STP, we decided it would be great to keep up with our riding and challenging ourselves with these longer rides while raising money for good causes. Two gals at our gym (Global) informed us of this ride and we decided to go for it. The problem though was that the $50 registration and a minimum of $250 donation was required to participate. We couldn't come up with the $300 each on our own, nor did we have much time to pick-pocket our buddies for donations. So we turned to our doctors at Oral Surgery Plus. They get to donate, put their names out there (tax-deductible) and we get to have our fun...and some pretty awesome jerseys supplied by the docs as well!

Cheryl, myself, Michelle and Diane.

"Proudly powered by Oral Surgery Plus"

Cheryl and Diane along the trail.

And again at a random bike shop along the way...

Dinner was provided by the CD'A Casino

The story behind this one: Negative Nancy showed up unexpectedly...so we saved her a seat at our table for dinner.

Konni and Jayme joined us for dinner and fun after day 1.

All done with breakfast (again, provided by the casino) and ready to hit the trail with Kelly Niles and Traci Fontaine.

It really was THAT much fun!

As a review, this was an amazing experience. It was very well supported with Wheelsport and Bicycle Butler there for repairs. Stops all along the way for fuel and rest. The organizers and volunteers were the friendliest I've encountered yet and the fun stuff we walked away with far outshined the STP. We were given nice jerseys and a participants medal, Saturday's lunch and dinner were taken care of for us as well as breakfast and lunch AND dinner on Sunday. The only frustration I had all weekend didn't have anything to do with the ride at all but with another 1st Annual ride that had been scheduled for the same weekend...Spokanes' Spokefest. While it is a great way to get folks out enjoying their bikes, I'd like to see the money...or something...go to a good cause instead of outshining one. Just a thought.

Malibu 2008

Another fantastic week at camp!
It rained the entire week…ok, not the entire week. We had one day of sun. Well, sorta sun. But we were blessed with the company of some girls with great attitudes and they took advantage of every moment, stopping only with hopes of finding some dry clothes.


We are the Malibu Army. Yea, tough all-right! (dressed for a volleyball competition that is not about volleyball at all)


Kayloni, Mackenzie and I…showin’ off our biceps…


The aftermath of our obstacle course. The only time you’ll encounter high school girls excited about getting muddy and wet and stinky. I only wish I had a picture of all of them. Intense!

A few of us before the beloved zipline

The lady leaders enjoying respite from the rain before our fancy dinner.

Super sunshine…the day we left.
Toby, Kayloni, Mackenzie, Myself and Tyler (who is a lot taller than he appears here)

As always, it was a great week!

Summer Review

The summer of 2008 was defined by two big events and many small but equally great ones wedged in-between.





I thought I’d revisit my post from July 3rd….
1. 204 miles. Period. …This is still the way that I feel about it. In fact, I didn’t get back on my bike for a good 2 ½ weeks. We’ve since reconciled our differences.

2. The “Blaze of Glory”…I still don’t know what the heck that was?

3. “The Hill” at mile 43. …mostly hype. It was no different than the hill we faced during the Lilac Century…in fact, it was shorter.

4. No stopping on the Lewis and Clark bridge…It looked and felt more like a herd of cattle. We were corralled on a side street until we were about a ¼ mile long modge-podge of cyclists. Once we were let loose, we inched (and I mean inched) our way up one side of the bridge; spaced out a little at the top and roared down the other side. This is where heeding the advice regarding the expansions should have come in handy…but I forgot it. I was a lucky one though and made it through just fine.

5. No new va-jay-jays. Dammit.

6. Optimism…I did greet the second day with the same optimism. Mostly because I knew we were half done and it was my understanding that the second day is easier…more on this thought later.

7. No rain. ‘nuf said.

8. expansion joints…see #4

9. Shy bladder…I am a freakin’ camel. Seriously.

10. “By this time tomorrow, I’ll be done”. Yes, this was expressed many, many times.

11. Great company, a great deal of giggles and MILES OF MEMORIES….I hit this one right on the nose. What a great group of gals to complete such a crazy goal with!

There were many great highlights. Kathy Best was my riding buddy both days. We laughed, I cried. She led many pace lines, I mustered up 1 ½. At times, we’d blow past groups of guys at a time and we didn’t mind a bit that it bothered them. There were a few times however, where I lost Kathi because she set her sites on showing up the fellas. “Oh hell, there she goes again…” But we made a few friends and encountered some weird people, too. I loved coming across those with radios strapped to their bikes, those with costumes, and of course the tandems were always a hoot. And about the idea that the 2nd day was easier? I call BS on that one. I told Kathi that if I saw another hill, I was going to plant myself right where I was and she'd have to come back for me with the van...we conqured about 6 more hills after that.

I won’t lie though. It did get frustrating at times when we encountered the rude and/or uneducated, both motorists and cyclists. I know 10,000 cyclists can be a teeny-weeny bit overwhelming but that doesn’t mean they can act like they didn’t see me.

Overall, the race was well supported, the food they offered for lunch was fantastic. We received a finishers patch that they placed on a rope so it could double as a medal? I think? And don’t forget the Tyvek STP jackets! Now, every time I pass a house with Tyvek on the side I proclaim, “I have a jacket made outta the same thing that house is wearing!” Nice.

If the STP is anything like childbirth, I’ll forget the pain and look forward to the next one. What a blast!