First off, I have been bad about blogging recently. A LOT has been going on... after a month in DAS BOOT, I finally got to take it off.. and have now been running officially for 4 weeks! There is still pain, but its minimized, and I have had to make certain adjustments to my stride, and foot placement etc, to hopefully prevent myself from a relapse. I was about 80% healed when I came out of the boot.. but watching the calender, as I managed to every day, glaring at me and reminding me that I was 3 weeks out from the first race of the season... well, in the words of the Marine Corps... "we dont plan... we improvise" and improvise I did... The first race down in Pensacola went well. I had a great support crew of Mom, Dad, Heather & Bryant there to see me through the 2hrs 15min it took me... and across the finish line first. It was a great experience to have all of them there, as well as have my first Overall 1st place finish be in my hometown... I couldnt have written it better. Bryant and I spent the day before the race laying on the beach enjoying the Pensacola sun, bushwackers, and drifting in and out of consciousness between naps and rotating to maximize sun exposure. The weather was perfect, and it was so much fun to introduce Bryant to the fam, the hometown, and a large piece of what makes me tick.
Yesterday was the Women's Indian Springs Sprint Tri, where I crossed the finish line 1st, but ended up getting beat out by about a minute to a woman that started in a wave after me... I was 3 minutes ahead of everyone, no one in site, and I totally thought I had it in the bag... just goes to show. Im pleased with the performance though, bc I didnt feel good AT ALL. I caught the plague that my roommate Gozer came home with, and promptly went to the doc to get heavy antibiotics to shock my system to be ready for next weekend... and shock it has... but the nice side effects are energy loss, dehydration, and an over-all icky feeling.
So back to my ride thoughts of addictions. My ride left me thinking a lot about life, and the addictions I have to random things that just make me excited to experience each and every day. Here are just a few I was thinking about:
- Human-powered speed... riding my bike above 40mph has to be one of the most exhilarating feelings in the entire world.
- The feeling at the end of a triathlon... an almost numbing, full body exhaustion, where drinking water and just standing feel AMAZING.
- Publix fresh cut fruit... I probably go through about 2 of their giant tubs a week! I feel healthy when I eat it, and I get excited when the watermelon is extra sweet :)
- Sitting out here on the back porch where the wind is blowing the trees around crazy crazy, and you cant hear anything but wind, leaves and branches making nose... also starring out into the back yard at the large green lusciousness of ridiculously tall trees... its so completely relaxing.
- Laying on Pensacola beach end of April, where its sunny and hot enough to lay out.. but the cool constant breeze keeps you from breaking a sweat... perfect conditions.
- Day dreaming about all the exotic travel adventures I want to experience in my lifetime.
- Learning... I am addicted to learning about history, tradition, colonies untouched by modern technology- that still manage to exist independently. Linguistics, military, sports, arts, music, human behavior... the list of topics could go on.
- Sports!! Whether it is a sport I compete in, or a sport I never tried, I'm addicted to watching, cheering, and the overall 'competitive air' that is present while witnessing sporting events. I have always been a diehard football fanatic since I was seven, but I am also becoming a huge fan of lacrosse... contact sport, fast paced... whats not to like!
- Deep conversations... whether it be about what you would find at the end of the universe, what you wanna be when you grow up, life goals, fears, top 10 things to do before dying, etc... the kind of fun, emotionally involved conversations where you forget what time it is, having been completely caught up in the moment.
- Skype & webcams! I will tell you what.. it was like my eyes were opened up to a whole new world! I never knew about skype, and how a webcam and this program can bring me 6 hours ahead to Germany and exactly where I wanna be... having a conversation with Bryant. Its like being right there in the room, staring at the person, hearing what they are saying, speaking back... and getting all the fun additions like facial expressions, tone, and even the silent pauses where there is no need for words.
- Learning more about myself... do you ever feel yourself opening up because of a person? And the more you find out about yourself.. the more it amazes you? I love the feeling of letting my guard down, uncut raw reactions to what is going on in my life, the inner emotions we usually suppress and keep only to ourselves revealed to someone who had the desire and capacity to figure out how to bring it out of you... its real life, and its amazing.
We'll stop there for now... but I think the positive addictions we have in our lives help to balance out all the negativity one can come across in a day. Think about it... issues at work, people driving around you, long lines, traffic, WAITING....are all negative things that can just cause stress and bring you out of a great mood... luckily, there are the simple comforts and addictions that we have in our lives that can bring us right back to our happy place.
