No Wimps, No Whiners

I did it again. I signed up for THIS.

GAH.

Excuse me while I search the innernet for an extra set of lungs. Mine will surely explode on Dec. 13th.

[Race sold out (600+ spots) in about 48 hours]

Apparently foolishness and bragging rights are contagious.

Day 9: Cuz i got nothing else....

The Names of Snow White's Seven Dwarfs After Being Prescribed Paxil, Ritalin, Prozac,
Lithium, Provigil,and Benadryl.
BY JEFFREY GREENSTEIN

- - - -

Dwarf

Dwarf

Dwarf

Dwarf

Dwarf

Dwarf

Doc


MCSWEENEYS

Laughter gives us distance. It allows us to step back from an event, deal with it and then move on. -Bob Newhart

Orf, you're the man. Thanks for this.

THIS

So I'm reading this book. Off and on while in the pool trying to keep the skin from actually melting of my [big-boned...what?] skeleton. It's hot here.

Book is called "Bleachy-Haired Honky Bitch: Tales from a Bad Neighborhood" by Hollis Gillespie. I know. Not everyone is as amused by colorful language as I am lately. It's just a silly memoir that helps me remember my life is not the only one that borders on the absurd and pathetic on a DAILY BASIS. And a lot of finding blessed humor in it is really just paying attention.

The book itself is not all that great or I would have finished it by now. But I'm aware that my maybe unusually, to quote a friend, cryptic (?) and darker posts may have rang some alarm bells. I am fine. Just finding my way after a whole lot of changes in the past year. There are no regrets, even after having my heart handed back to me on a platter. Even though I ignored the warning signs that in hindsight are unmistakable.

Anyway, I've been paying attention. To every feeling instead of pushing them away and hoping they'll either go away on their own or allowing distractions to lull me into believing I can deal with them later. I believe this is something I need to work on and it has not been easy. At all. Struggling with anger and honest sadness is not something I'm very familiar with. But I could never give up the comfort of words. And I read this: "I sensed then that later I'd become familiar with how painful it is to bleed life back into an atrophied part of yourself, to come alive after the comfort of deadness." And it made me sigh, "Huh. Ok then. Not just me."

Alright, enough already. I'm pretty sure, that one of my favorite sources of giggles (if he read my blog, which I'm sure he doesn't) would remind me I am way too Emo, he's sick of me bleeding all over, I'm a loser and that not even Jesus loves me. And then I'd call him an a**hat and remind him I embrace my loserness. And life goes on.

Thank you friends.

Global Warming?

Has anyone noticed how schizophrenic Mother Nature is lately? I’m really trying to get back into the training these last few weeks and have been doing pretty well. Last week I ran in almost 80 degree temps, with lots of humidity in shorts and a tank top. Three days later I ran with huge snowflakes blowing DIRECTLY INTO MY EYEBALLS for an hour. Less than 48 hours later I ran again in shorts and a t-shirt. I’m starting to think Al Gore may have a point.

Tomorrow, the girls and I are road-tripping to the Motherland. We are voluntarily leaving a place where it’s supposed to be 70 degrees and the club is organizing bike rides, and instead spending 8 hours in cramped and messy van to prolong our winter as long as humanly possible. Why? Because there’s important people to see up there and although the stubborn Winter is reluctant to give in to a tentative Spring, we will bask in the warmth of family and friends. And I am grateful.

The breakdown...475 miles + 8ish hours =

*Many potty stops and much eyerolling for mommy’s walnut sized bladder exacerbated by fountain diet coke
*4 movies on the DVD player (my children have been driven to various edges of the east coast and to the top of the continental divide without ever once looking out the windows)
*4 million crayons in the seat grooves in the bottom of the van (is it really so hard to put them back in the box!?)
*2 Happy Meals and two cans of Pringles (no matter how bad sour cream and onion chips reek) but NO chocolate (makes the little people very……um……disagreeable)
*Most of an audio book on my iPod when turning up the movie/opening the windows doesn’t drown out the inevitable whining (Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella……ironic, yes?)
*1000 times "what?!" because Kate starts everything that comes out of her mouth with "Mommy……" and waits for me to say ""what?"" NO MATTER WHAT I’M DOING and THE CHILD NEVER RUNS OUT OF THINGS TO SAY.
*100 times Kate will try to get the truck drivers to sound their horns when she pumps her fist in the air (I know. Just be glad she doesn’t realize how easy it is to get them to do that after puberty)

Time with family and friends?

PRICELESS!!