Moving On

No, I’m not going anywhere. Well, not now. The blog is staying, I’m staying.

RWA called their Golden Heart and Rita awards finalists on Monday. My phone rang, but it was my son’s teacher. Mind you, I was on a conference call for my job at the time, so not only did I throw the headset across my desk (and slap the “mute” button) but my hands shook and my heart raced as I answered the cell phone. I adore my son’s teacher, but in that moment, I could’ve killed him with my bare hands. In the end, he had no way of knowing.

I entered another contest, but didn’t make the next round there either.

Know what? I’ll live. I cried a little, but I didn’t drink myself into a stupor (I had to pick up the oldest from his class trip), and nothing else in my  life slowed down. I still went to the gym, and I came home and made dinner and answered email and did some crocheting and watched TV. (The bright spot in my evening was the contestant on “The Voice” named Carla. Ooooohhh, listening to Adam Levine saying my name over and over and over…! <melty>

Saturday I run my first 5K. I’m looking forward to it. It’s going to be a challenge, but I think I’m up to it. I don’t expect to win. I only want to finish without killing myself or injuring others. 🙂

Sure, I’m disappointed about not finaling in two contests, but life goes on. You can’t sit on your hands, waiting for success to come to you.

Me? I’m running toward it.

 

The 10 Commandments of Rookie Runners

Or maybe joggers. At my current weight/speed, I’m pretty sure I’m still just a jogger, but I’m working my way up to runner.

The other night I ran three miles without planning to. The weather here in SE PA was SO nice, and the park was so pretty, and I had 90 minutes to myself, so that when I finished four laps around the football field, I decided to keep going. I ended up doing two more laps. When I went home, I found a map of the park and realized, each lap is 0.5 miles. I got there with no plans to run a 5K, but I did it anyway. And I loved it.

At the same time, it inspired me to think of the Must Do things for new runners like me. Four occurred to me while I was running (or jogging; don’t judge me). The rest, I came up with afterward. See if you can add some of your own. I’m always open to new ideas.

10 Commandments of the Newbie Runner

1. Thou shalt not run with thy mouth open, unless you want to include in your diet plan the calories from consuming gnats, flies, and the occasional moth.
2. When the Rocky theme comes on thy iPod, thou shalt stop jogging and RUN.
3. Thou art running for thy health and to whittle down the ass that could shade Rhode Island, not to be seen. (I’m looking at you, blonde cougar with the deep V-neck skin-tight shirt, wearing more perfume than Macy’s stocks on Black Friday.)
4. Thou shalt not run while wearing a maxi pad, unless you want a fresh reminder of what diaper rash feels like.
5. When thou thinkest thou art tired, thou shalt run one more lap.
6. Thou shalt not reward thy three mile run with a hot fudge sundae from Mr. Softee. (At least walk to the DQ, for crying out loud.)
7. Thou shalt not puss out on the inclines. Likewise, thou shalt not speed up on the declines. You’re not fooling anyone. We all know where the downhill slopes are.
8. Thou shalt get away with only two uses of the gym towel before it goes in the wash. For the love of all that’s healthy, please.
9. Thou shalt not imitate Kirk Gibson as thou hittest the 5K mark. Unless no one’s around. If you’re alone, knock yourself out.
10. Thou shalt run just one more lap.

So tell me, what are your running commandments? What have you learned about yourself from running that you didn’t know before? Or, if you don’t run, why not? What do you do instead?

Man, do I wish knitting burned as many calories as a good 3 mile run. I’d be the happiest girl on the planet. Also the skinniest.

I Didn’t Forget

But I’ve been busy beyond belief. I’m working 12 hour days sometimes, and I’m going to the gym for an hour, and then there’s laundry and dinner and household stuff. I love spring, but I’m dreading the lawn care. 🙂

And yet, I’m excited. Today is the Ides of March, and for years March 15th always seems to bring me something good. Today it’s hearing that Mario Williams signed with the Bills (OMG, did they need a stronger defense) and my first session with a therapist. I really feel like today is the start of a new chapter in my life, and I’m feeling really positive.

So ‘scuse me while I go knit myself a sweater while watching the Syracuse basketball game–I *heart* March Madness!!–and then tonight I’ll watch more basketball and the Rangers game. (I *heart* Ranger hockey too!!) And life will keep going, but it’s going to get better.

I’m Serious

 

I must be serious about running. I’ve been to four brick-and-mortar stores looking for a sports bra that fits me (I’m a little more blessed than the average runner) and had no luck, so at the risk of being spammed to death, I looked online and found a store that sells sports bras for plus-sized women. It’s going to cost me more than two regular bras would, but if it works, it’ll be worth it. I’ve discovered the hard way that nipple chafing isn’t a myth. As my long-standing joke goes, a chest cold for me could be fatal. Hey, it is what it is, or in my case, they are what they are.

I take Mondays off from the gym because I have so much other stuff going on, but I’m starting to suspect that my not exercising on Mondays makes my Tuesdays that much worse. I was a bear on Tuesday, and not just because the furnace went dead the Thursday before. My mood didn’t improve until I got in a 2-mile run.

I used to think that running was my way of stepping out of my comfort zone, but now it IS my comfort zone. It’s something I do entirely for me, because I enjoy it and because I want to do it. it doesn’t hurt that there are some other nice-looking runners at my gym and I wouldn’t mind impressing them, but when it gets down to it, I do it for me. I feel good after a run, and I look forward to going to run. Hell, there are some times that knowing I’m going to go for a run is the only thing that pulls me through the day.

But it’s time to get out of the comfort zone again. I haven’t been writing fiction lately because I just can’t get my head back there. I’m pushing myself like I used to jump-start my old ’72 VW Bug. It was stick shift so if I let it roll down the hill and popped the clutch, the engine would jump-start itself. I had hoped writing would be the same, but so far…? But I need to put the negative thoughts aside and JUST DO IT. J Yeah, where have you heard that before?

I need to get back to telling a story. That’s what I’m really here to do.

More Music

It’s been the week from hell. I like being busy at work, but someone’s taken it upon themselves to be sure I TRULY enjoy my job in that fashion. Of course, I’m still thankful I have a job. For now, anyway. (It’s the unofficial motto where I work, and the mantra we sing to ourselves when we go a 5th year in a row without a raise.)

Anyway, rather than listen to me blather on, how about some music? Problem being, I can’t remember what song I had in mind to inspire you and me both. I want to say it was from Pippin, because that seems to surface on my iPod a lot lately–and at times when I most need the reminder–but the other day I mentioned this song to some friends, and I forgot how quickly I can get lost in the story too.

“So Close” by Jon McLaughlin, from Enchanted. As my youngest often says when he’s MCing a video, “I hope you enjoy it.”

Next week: Eminem. 🙂 Or something related to baseball, since spring training is upon us again. As Walt Whitman once said, “I see great things in baseball. It’s our game, the American game. It will repair our losses and be a blessing to us.”