Yoga

Believe it or not, I've actually had a lot to say over the past couple of weeks, but just haven't had a chance to sit down and type it all out.  Looks like things are going to start picking up again pretty quick here...

I mentioned being interested, and I've done it once before, but I'm picking up hot yoga.  Living Social had a fabulous deal a little over a week ago.  For $20 you could attend 20 hot yoga classes at Blissful Spirits Hot Yoga.  Considering that this is about 90% off the price of a 20 class membership, I went ahead and jumped on that, even though I'd already decided to hold off on the hot yoga until I was in better shape.  Well, it turns out that my friend, T, had also bought the same deal and we immediately made plans to go two days later (last Thursday, 4/7).

Apparently, T and I were not the only ones who bought the Living Social deal.  In fact, 880+ others had joined in on purchasing that, and it almost seemed like every single one of them had decided to attend the same class we had.  I'll just say this....the 105 degrees that the room is heated to must have been well over that in reality.  50+ people showed up for that first class...we were squished together and everyone's body heat just increased the temperature in the room.  Within the first few minutes I knew I was in for a real workout.

And a workout it was.  Maybe it was the heat.  Maybe it was the fact that I was new and wasn't in my comfort zone.  Maybe it was the fact that I've been pretty stationary for the past three months.  Whatever it was, this class was rough.  I couldn't hold some of the poses and I couldn't drink enough water.  I started to get pretty down on myself and sunk into a foul mood...until the instructor reminded us to remember our dedications that we'd set at the beginning of class.  Mine was to gain clarity in a difficult situation I was facing and to find inner peace.  Just remembering that that was why I was there was enough to push through.

I left that first class with a red face, soaked clothes and drenched hair, but I also felt like I'd had the most amazing massage of my life.  I felt relaxed, happy and at ease.  Nothing bad mattered.  This feeling lasted for several days and all I could talk about was how fabulous the class was.  I couldn't wait to go back!

So my plan is to attend class every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.  Running/cycling/whatever can fit in around that.  Now that I have experienced this other side to "working out" (because to me working out is usually not fun), it's all I want to do.  I really think that I'll be able to see some real benefits in my life - not just physical side effects, but the mental and emotional clarity that I need.

99 Days

I have never denied the fact that I am a lazy person.  If I get an extra day off of work, you can bet that my only plan will be to sleep as much as possible.  There's not much that I love more than pulling on a pair of pajamas and sitting on the couch with a glass of wine and a book (or the computer).  But that's all over now.

After 99 days of either putting absolutely no weight on my foot, a lot of sitting on my ever-widening ass, or spinning away mindlessly on my trainer, I'm finally able to start running again!  And I did.  On the 100th day.  :)

I need to clarify though.  I'm using the word "running" very loosely here.  My goal was 30 minutes, distance didn't matter.  Pace didn't matter.  All I needed to do was move for 30 minutes.  I alternated 1 minute of running and 4 minutes of walking - just like I did over three years ago when I was first learning how to run.  It was an amazing experience.  I was a little sore and felt it in my foot and calf, but it wasn't painful.  I only covered a mile and a half (approximately.  I didn't want to measure it out) and who knows how much of that I actually ran, but it was awesome.

My new plan is to lay off the racing.  For a long time, when I first started running and up through my first marathon, being slow really didn't bother me.  I was out there, doing something that I enjoyed, and that's what mattered.  But somewhere along the way, I let it get to me.  And little by little, running lost it's glamour.  I couldn't find the enjoyment in it and it was such a chore.  I need to rediscover that and I think the way to do that is to just go out there, and run.  No watches, no training plans, no structure at all.  All I want now is to feel my body moving.

A Fresh Start

I decided that this blog needed a new name, and since I'm not real excited by the idea of continuing with long distance running, I settled on this.

I wrote in the past about Bikram Yoga and I think I'm going to pick this up again.  A local studio opened a location about 15 minutes from house and are offering a fantastic deal for new students, so I'll probably swing by the studio sometime this week.

Other than that, nothing exciting yet.  Hopefully soon though - I haven't been this boring for so long in a while!

Moving along

I've been really bad about this blog thing - and I realize that I start many, many entries that way. There has just been absolutely nothing worth writing about going on. I know it sounds a little sad, but I love that there is nothing BIG going on. For once. I'm not training for some ridiculously long race, studying for an incredibly hard exam, building a house or changing jobs. I'm just being, and I really hope that I can last the rest of the year like this (please please please, don't let things get out of control!).

I was cleared to start riding a stationary bike a few weeks ago, so I managed to find a fabulous deal on a fluid trainer on craigslist. I've been doing that a few times a week, although I'm trying ride every day, Mon-Thurs and again on Sat for this week. So far, so good. I'll be good to go running-wise on April 4 so I'll probably start that up again that afternoon, although I'm still in limbo with my running goals for this year (and most likely next year too). I was toying with the idea of Rock n' Roll Denver (which, for those of you who remember, was my first marathon) but I just saw that Rock n' Roll Vegas will be held in the evening this year. Hmm...an extra month and a half to train, a night time race, and VEGAS?! Count me in! Um...for the half, anyway.

We're tentatively making travel plans for the year too. Generally we do one big trip in spring/early summer for our anniversary and then maybe a few long weekends in Denver or Vegas, but that won't be the case this year. Although we were planning a week in Madrid this May, we're holding off until we can go for 2+ weeks at a time. Maybe next fall or in early 2013. We're planning a road trip to Vegas this May with my BFF and her boyfriend, and then we're going to wrap up the week in Dallas so we can catch Jimmy Buffett. Yes, I know. You just can't help what you love, right? And I love beaches, drinks and having a good time...therefore, my love for Jimmy Buffett is explainable. :)

So beyond that, my plan is to just kind of sit. Maybe get started on some landscaping for my back yard (blech, not exciting). I started playing around with making some jewelery so I'd like to see where that can go...not that it'll make a millionaire or anything, but at least it's something to fill my time. And I love that I can look at something and say "Hey, I can make that!" Yeah, it's not the best photo, but you can't be too picky when you're stuck at work with just a folder and the camera on your phone.

So...lets see if anything exciting comes up within the next couple of months - I need something to write about!

Brrrr!

Like most of the country, I'm freezing my behind off right now! The banner at the bottom of the TV screen says that it's 10* in ABQ and I've heard over and over all day that the police dept is discouraging any travel in the metro area...scary, when the hubs drives for a living and HAS to be at work (and therefore, driving).

But I'll admit it - I'm a sucker for cold weather. I say I want to live somewhere that gets a real winter, and maybe I'd regret it once I'm actually there, but I'm totally digging this. The unfortunate thing about Albuquerque is that we're not really equipped to handle this, so even though there was only an inch or so of snow on the ground this morning, the roads were too icy to even consider getting to work (well, when you're on crutches and have to rely on other people to drive you). But even working from home today, I was actually so busy I didn't even get to eat lunch till about 5.00 tonight. Fun times.

But for now, I'm going to hobble my way to the kitchen to mix a warming, adult beverage (what, it's cold!), and then settle back down on the couch to wait for the hubs to get home. :)

8 days down!

I can't believe that it's already been a week since my surgery. I'm definitely ready to get off this couch, but I know it's going to be quite the event going back to work. Just hobbling around the living room is enough to get me out of breath - I'm not sure how it'll be running around an entire floor full of accounting people, but I'm sure I'll manage. I just keep telling myself that these crutches are an excellent way to work on my upper body strength. ;-)

So far everything is going great though. I had a little scare on Wednesday morning when I fell in the bathroom trying to put my hair up. I ended up in more pain that I can describe and having to go see the doctor...but the good news is that he took the cast off and put me in a boot a couple of days early (and everything was fine, just sore for a day or two). Walking on it is nearly impossible though, but I plan to work on that a little this weekend. I doubt it'll be enough for me to get completely off the crutches by Monday morning, but hopefully I'll be a little more comfortable at work.

I don't have any feeling in the front of my leg, down around my ankle, but I'm sure it'll come back. The doctor didn't seem concerned at all about it on Wednesday and I had some serious tingling and a little pain in that area all day yesterday....hopefully that just means that the nerves are waking up.

But the great news is that I'll be able to start running again after the 6 week mark! It'll be slow going and the doctor warned me that at 6 weeks I may still be struggling with just walking around in a regular shoe, but I'm excited that it's coming. Even though I'm not sure how much running I'll be doing, I feel that once I hit that 6 week mark I'll be able to do pretty much anything I want to - time to get the bike tuned up!

Post-Op

Well, I’m 4 days post-op from my plantar fascia release and so far, so good. I’m in a splint/cast thing for this week and then I’ll graduate to a boot on Friday. I’ll be in that 24 hours a day for two weeks, then at nighttime only for an additional three weeks. It’s been rough having to rely so heavily on other people to do simple things for me. Want to go upstairs to grab my hairbrush? Nope, gotta wait till the hubs is home so he can pick me up (I never mastered the crutches on the stairs, so I crawl and then can’t get up at the top). Want a re-fill on my water or soda? Better hope my sweatshirt with the pockets is near by because I can’t carry anything. And lets not even talk about attempting to take a shower.

But despite all of this, I’m doing pretty good. Very low pain, and save for one bad experience on the Vicodin, it’s been very manageable. I have no idea when I’ll be able to start running again…I’m assuming it will be sometime after I’m completely done with the boot, but that’s a question I plan to ask the doctor on Friday.

I’ve always known that my friends and family rock, but they have been truly amazing the past few days. We haven’t had to cook a single meal thanks to my family and all my friends/neighbors (funny story – we’re very close friends with 4 other couples in our neighborhood…3 of those couples actually live on our street within a few houses of ours). I am really a very lucky girl to have these people in my life.

Sometimes I Just Need to Hear Myself Talk

…or type. Whatever.

My surgery is drawing closer – pre op is in five days– and I have very limited information on what to expect. This isn’t my doctor’s fault at all. He offered to tell me about it time and time again, but I thought that by keeping myself in the dark, it would never happen and I’d wake up one morning pain-free. Yeah, that didn’t happen and now I’m kicking myself a little bit.

Regardless, I have 100% full faith and trust in my doctor. Maybe I’m a little crazy just blindly trusting someone to slice open my body, but I’ve always liked him and felt confident in his work.

Anyway, I’m done whining.

So the hubs and I have been in our house for almost seven months now – holy god, where did the time go???! We have yet to do any decorating and it’s getting to the point of being ridiculous. We literally have two pictures hung (one is an amazing painting done by a very close friend, the other is a series of three wedding photos that my sister framed for us) and I haven’t put any thought at all what I want to do with the rest of the house. Until this weekend when the close painter friend brought it up (okay, he said that our house was really boring and I needed to work on that. True – harsh, but true...and FWIW, he said it with love).

So this is my idea. Please note that I am not an artist and this is not to scale. Also, the big squares are windows (which actually have white, wood blinds on them) and the little squares are pictures that I have yet to find. They are supposed to be the same size, similar in design and hanging in a straight line (although I’m not sure how many I’d actually need). There is also an armchair in the corner and we’re considering buying a couple of black leather ottomans to put under the window (or one big, long one…can you see how indecisive I am?).

So. That is what I want, in a nutshell. But it’s nearly impossible to find it because although I don’t know specifically what I want, I DEFINITELY know that I DON’T want anything that I’ve seen so far. It needs to be a little funky, but not completely out there. And they all need to tie together nicely and to be obvious that they’re related, but not matchy-matchy. Oh, and brightly colored too. Or maybe black and white photographs.

So, yeah. If you can find what I’m looking for, you get a gold star.

What’s that saying? If you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself?

I’ve always wanted to be a photographer. My mom is a photographer and I grew up in her darkroom. I started to take classes when I was in college, but once I was informed that I’m not creative (not exactly a lie), I dropped it. Hence, I am now an accountant who has spent the past several months feeling lost and unhappy with where I am in life. Don’t get me wrong, I really like my job and I work with a great group of people. While I’m not sure that Beancounter is the right title for me forever, it is definitely where I should be right now.

But still…I’ve felt this disappointment in myself lately. I need a hobby. So here I am, with the 35mm camera I got when I started college and a roll of film, hoping desperately that I can somehow take the jumbled, disorganized ideas in my head and create something that I want to look at for at least the next couple of years.

And yes, you read that right. A 35mm camera and a roll of film. I’ve gone through two point-and-shoot digital cameras over the past five-ish years, the last of which died a horrific death on Halloween night, so I’m currently camera-less. I need a new point-and-shoot, but don’t have the cash to spend on it. And I really, really, really want a DSLR, which I definitely can’t afford right now. So, here goes nothing. An uncreative chick with a camera, undefined ideas and a roll (or six) of film. I feel better already.

New Beginnings

This is certainly the time of year for new beginnings and I intend to have a few myself.

I have been in a funk. A deep, deep funk. I'm not sure that anything is really wrong with me, but I sure as hell have not been myself. I've had a very full past three years...mostly more good than bad, but still...very full. I got married and changed jobs in 2007, only to change jobs again in February of 2008. In fact, I started my new job the same day that my very first running program began, thus 2008 is now known as The Year of the Marathon. I ran the Denver Marathon only 9 months after that first, scary running group meeting. Since then I've fallen into injury after injury...knees, hamstrings, hips, then my foot. I pushed through plantar fasciitis so I could run the NYC Maraton in November 2009. Really, come on. You don't get into NYC on your first try and then NOT run it. I think that was the beginning of the end. I just didn't enjoy running anymore. It felt like a chore to just put my shoes on every time, and a lot of times, I'd get dressed only to end up sitting on the couch and feeling like a failure. When I signed up for Chicago in early 2010, I felt like it was something I needed to do. I'd run a marathon each year for the past two. What kind of a loser would just stop?

Well. Me.

Yes, there were other issues (like my foot being ready to fall off) but at the very base of it, I just didn't feel like it. I've run off and on since July, but nothing serious. Everytime I'd start to miss it, my foot would act up and I'd lay off for a while more. I think I've had enough...and I use "think" because while I've definitely had it up to here with this pain, I'm still not sure what I'm going to do once it's all fixed. But, regardless of where the future takes me, I've decided that getting this issue fixed is my top priority right now, so on January 21, my podiatrist will perform plantar fasciitis surgery on my right foot.

I'm excited to have something that is more likely to work (trust me, I've done it all), but at the same time, this is kind of a big, scary step and I'm hopeful that I'm one of the many that don't have any issues going forward.

So, I guess all I can do at this point is sit back and see where things go from here.