I've had so much fun over the past few weeks with my family that it's hard to narrow down all of the wonderful things that my true love has given to me... our amazing son, a wonderful home, a happy marriage and more love in my heart than I ever thought possible. There have been amazing foods, perfect Christmas presents, fun days out with the family and cozy nights in. We've shared laughs and hugs and hilarious moments. I have more than I ever could have imagined and most of them are made possible because of one amazing man! Thank you and I love you!!!
... and a partridge in a pear tree...
Monday, December 31, 2012
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
On the 6th day of Christmas my true love gave to me...
... a lesson in paying it forward.
I've always believed in the power of karma... an action or deed creating the entire cycle of cause and effect. There's both good and bad karma, the idea of paying it forward, of course, being the action that creates good karma, starting a cycle of good deeds paid in advance instead of the repayment of favors already received.
This time of year we all hear feel good stories of those paying it forward to others... making up the difference for someone's groceries when they don't have enough to pay for what they had in the their cart, paying for the gas of a complete stranger at the gas station before they have the chance to swipe their own card, paying for a meal at a restaurant for a family who doesn't expect it. It's heartwarming and reminds us of the good in people... even in the midst of terrible heartache and trying times. But today was the first time that I felt it, saw it in action, and was a part of the good karma cycle.
Earlier today, over lunch with my husband, he shared with me an opportunity he'd had to pay it forward... a random act of kindness to a complete stranger... and we discussed what a good feeling it had given him. It wasn't huge in monetary value... just a small thing with a note to the recipient "Merry Christmas. Pay it forward." I've never been more proud to call this man my husband.
Later in the afternoon I received a call from our son's daycare. It appeared, as I suspected was a possibility earlier in the morning, that he had an ear infection. I had already put in a call to his pediatrician hoping to get him in that afternoon, but the earliest they could manage was tomorrow evening. Unwilling to let him suffer an additional 24 hours if it wasn't completely necessary, I took him to the CVS Minute Clinic. I was warned that the wait times were usually long (up to 3 hours), but my options were limited. Fortunately, there were only 3 people in line ahead of us and, somehow, our son managed to remain calm, quiet and well-behaved. As we sat on the floor of CVS (all of the chairs having been occupied), a woman asked if I was interested in switching places with her in line. She was next and obviously knew that, when it comes to toddlers, extra wait time can sometimes turn unruly. As much as I wanted to tell her that I appreciated her offer, but insist that she not give up her spot in line for us, I also knew she was right... our son is not known for his patience. I thanked her profusely as she told the nurse to take us in her place, and I couldn't help but feel that my son and I were being rewarded for my husband's good deed from the day before. I don't know if I deserved it, but you'd better believe I have plans for paying it forward! :)
I've always believed in the power of karma... an action or deed creating the entire cycle of cause and effect. There's both good and bad karma, the idea of paying it forward, of course, being the action that creates good karma, starting a cycle of good deeds paid in advance instead of the repayment of favors already received.
This time of year we all hear feel good stories of those paying it forward to others... making up the difference for someone's groceries when they don't have enough to pay for what they had in the their cart, paying for the gas of a complete stranger at the gas station before they have the chance to swipe their own card, paying for a meal at a restaurant for a family who doesn't expect it. It's heartwarming and reminds us of the good in people... even in the midst of terrible heartache and trying times. But today was the first time that I felt it, saw it in action, and was a part of the good karma cycle.
Earlier today, over lunch with my husband, he shared with me an opportunity he'd had to pay it forward... a random act of kindness to a complete stranger... and we discussed what a good feeling it had given him. It wasn't huge in monetary value... just a small thing with a note to the recipient "Merry Christmas. Pay it forward." I've never been more proud to call this man my husband.
Later in the afternoon I received a call from our son's daycare. It appeared, as I suspected was a possibility earlier in the morning, that he had an ear infection. I had already put in a call to his pediatrician hoping to get him in that afternoon, but the earliest they could manage was tomorrow evening. Unwilling to let him suffer an additional 24 hours if it wasn't completely necessary, I took him to the CVS Minute Clinic. I was warned that the wait times were usually long (up to 3 hours), but my options were limited. Fortunately, there were only 3 people in line ahead of us and, somehow, our son managed to remain calm, quiet and well-behaved. As we sat on the floor of CVS (all of the chairs having been occupied), a woman asked if I was interested in switching places with her in line. She was next and obviously knew that, when it comes to toddlers, extra wait time can sometimes turn unruly. As much as I wanted to tell her that I appreciated her offer, but insist that she not give up her spot in line for us, I also knew she was right... our son is not known for his patience. I thanked her profusely as she told the nurse to take us in her place, and I couldn't help but feel that my son and I were being rewarded for my husband's good deed from the day before. I don't know if I deserved it, but you'd better believe I have plans for paying it forward! :)
Monday, December 17, 2012
On the 5th day of Christmas my true love gave to me...
Eleven hours of sleep...
7 hours of sleep is a really good night... 6 is more common... 5 happens more frequently than I would like. Sleep is just not something I get a lot of. On weekends, my husband and I take turns sleeping in. If we're lucky, we each get one day. But, with our hectic schedules these last few weeks, we're lucky if one of us gets to sleep in at all. After the busy week I'd had, I really needed it. My husband must have recognized it too... thank goodness!
Of course, it wasn't just the extra hours of sleep (which were heavenly), but what that meant for the rest of my day. When I finally rolled out of bed at 10:30, I felt good... really good... better than I had in some time. When our son took his nap, I had the energy to go for a run... a wonderful 3.7 mile run in unseasonably warm 50 degree weather. When I got back, I felt so good about myself that I didn't sit around eating junk food the rest of the afternoon like I might otherwise have done... I made myself a salad for lunch, took a shower, stretched the way you're supposed to after working out instead of the quick 30 seconds I usually give it.
Since I don't know how soon I'll have another opportunity like this, I'm glad I was able to take full advantage of the situation when I did. Five golden rings don't hold a candle to a good night's sleep!
7 hours of sleep is a really good night... 6 is more common... 5 happens more frequently than I would like. Sleep is just not something I get a lot of. On weekends, my husband and I take turns sleeping in. If we're lucky, we each get one day. But, with our hectic schedules these last few weeks, we're lucky if one of us gets to sleep in at all. After the busy week I'd had, I really needed it. My husband must have recognized it too... thank goodness!
Of course, it wasn't just the extra hours of sleep (which were heavenly), but what that meant for the rest of my day. When I finally rolled out of bed at 10:30, I felt good... really good... better than I had in some time. When our son took his nap, I had the energy to go for a run... a wonderful 3.7 mile run in unseasonably warm 50 degree weather. When I got back, I felt so good about myself that I didn't sit around eating junk food the rest of the afternoon like I might otherwise have done... I made myself a salad for lunch, took a shower, stretched the way you're supposed to after working out instead of the quick 30 seconds I usually give it.
Since I don't know how soon I'll have another opportunity like this, I'm glad I was able to take full advantage of the situation when I did. Five golden rings don't hold a candle to a good night's sleep!
On the 4th day of Christmas my true love gave to me...
A big strong shoulder to cry on...
Friday was a rough day from the start. Thursday night was a concoction of 19 wonderful ladies, Christmas Ale, delicious appetizers, champagne, a festive gift exchange, spiked hot chocolate, more snacks, then more Christmas Ale. Mixed somewhere in there were hurt feelings, the new awareness of a year-long grudge and staying up way past my bedtime. The morning brought sadness I wasn't really prepared for... and a feeling like I was in high school all over again. The hangover didn't help.
The afternoon brought news of the horrific loss of innocent lives in CT. I won't get into the politics of it all, nor will I share every sad story that I've heard over the last few days. There are no words for this kind of tragedy. Nevertheless, as a parent, it's impossible to comprehend that kind of loss. And while it probably should have put everything into perspective for me that day, I instead let it stew with my existing sadness, mixing in with the foggy remnants of a well-deserved hangover, and I found myself in a depression I couldn't get myself out of.
Super husband to the rescue.
Well, sort of. I certainly didn't think so at the time. In fact, I was quite disappointed in my husband's lack of interest in helping me sort out my sadness. Needless to say, we were completely on the same page with our feelings concerning what was going on in CT. But when it came to my own personal issue, I got a whole lot of nothing. No problem solving assistance, no insistence that it was just a misunderstanding. He just sat there... listening.
Crap! That was it! He was listening! Just like I always ask him to do. All I want is for him to be there for me, let me vent, let me know he's there for me, tell me he understands, and just let me get whatever it is I'm feeling off my chest. Damn it... he was doing exactly what I wanted... what I needed... it just took a few days for me to appreciate it.
Fact is, my problems are not his to solve. His job as my husband, is to be there for me... to listen, to comfort, to tell me it's all going to be okay. To run to the store at 11:00 at night to get me something I wanted, even though I didn't need it. Okay, so that's not really his job either, but he did it anyway :)
The point is that he did everything he was supposed to do... everything I've ever asked of him. The problem isn't solved, my sadness isn't gone... but I walk away with the knowledge that the next time I'm having a bad day, feeling sad or just need someone to listen, my husband will be just the man I need.
Friday was a rough day from the start. Thursday night was a concoction of 19 wonderful ladies, Christmas Ale, delicious appetizers, champagne, a festive gift exchange, spiked hot chocolate, more snacks, then more Christmas Ale. Mixed somewhere in there were hurt feelings, the new awareness of a year-long grudge and staying up way past my bedtime. The morning brought sadness I wasn't really prepared for... and a feeling like I was in high school all over again. The hangover didn't help.
The afternoon brought news of the horrific loss of innocent lives in CT. I won't get into the politics of it all, nor will I share every sad story that I've heard over the last few days. There are no words for this kind of tragedy. Nevertheless, as a parent, it's impossible to comprehend that kind of loss. And while it probably should have put everything into perspective for me that day, I instead let it stew with my existing sadness, mixing in with the foggy remnants of a well-deserved hangover, and I found myself in a depression I couldn't get myself out of.
Super husband to the rescue.
Well, sort of. I certainly didn't think so at the time. In fact, I was quite disappointed in my husband's lack of interest in helping me sort out my sadness. Needless to say, we were completely on the same page with our feelings concerning what was going on in CT. But when it came to my own personal issue, I got a whole lot of nothing. No problem solving assistance, no insistence that it was just a misunderstanding. He just sat there... listening.
Crap! That was it! He was listening! Just like I always ask him to do. All I want is for him to be there for me, let me vent, let me know he's there for me, tell me he understands, and just let me get whatever it is I'm feeling off my chest. Damn it... he was doing exactly what I wanted... what I needed... it just took a few days for me to appreciate it.
Fact is, my problems are not his to solve. His job as my husband, is to be there for me... to listen, to comfort, to tell me it's all going to be okay. To run to the store at 11:00 at night to get me something I wanted, even though I didn't need it. Okay, so that's not really his job either, but he did it anyway :)
The point is that he did everything he was supposed to do... everything I've ever asked of him. The problem isn't solved, my sadness isn't gone... but I walk away with the knowledge that the next time I'm having a bad day, feeling sad or just need someone to listen, my husband will be just the man I need.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
On the 3rd day of Christmas my true love gave to me...
An amazing birthday with my family...
I always hated that my birthday was so close to Christmas. It felt like everything birthday related was diluted with holiday stuff (presents wrapped in snowman paper, gifts that were to be considered for both birthday and Christmas, a time too busy with Christmas parties for anyone to be available for a birthday party). Of course, looking back, I don't believe any one of those things ever actually happened, with the possible exception of the birthday/Christmas joint gift, and that would have meant it was something really huge. I don't doubt for a second that these were the thoughts of a selfish kid/teenager/young adult... it's unlikely that I actually suffered in any way because of my birthday's proximity to Christmas. Nevertheless, this was how I felt.
Fast forward 32 years... with a husband and young son, an Elf on the Shelf, a boat load of hidden presents in the basement, and a serious love of the holiday season... and I'm suddenly feeling like maybe this isn't so bad. Over the last few years I've started to tell myself that everything holiday related is actually about my birthday. I'd been seeing things the wrong way for so long and, now, I've suddenly got it right. It's not about Christmas... it's all about me.
Okay, so that's a little over the top, but nevertheless, just because it's decorated with ornaments and bows, doesn't make it any less special for me. If anything, I'm fortunate to have a birthday surrounded by glitter and lights and people everywhere wishing you 'happy holidays'... a birthday is like a holiday, right?
My husband and I spent the day before my birthday together... went to lunch, got a massage, drove around town singing Christmas carols and finishing our Christmas shopping. There wasn't anything about it that screamed 'birthday', but I loved spending my day with my husband... Christmas shopping isn't something we usually do together. It was about 'Christmas' but it was also about quality time together. I enjoyed every minute! And I really didn't mind his decision to give me my presents a day early... it doesn't hurt that my husband has impeccable taste in purses!
On my actual birthday I received flowers at work, very much a Christmas arrangement and somehow the most beautiful flowers I'd ever received. I was planning to cook dinner, but my husband ordered pizza... sure, he could have cooked, but instead we got to spend more time together because neither of us was stuck slaving over the stove or doing dishes afterward... it was a perfect dinner (and one we didn't have to battle our son over, making the meal so much more enjoyable). My son picked out a 'birthday' cake for me... a monstrous chocolate cake with chocolate frosting... with a Christmas tree on top. My husband says he was adamant about the cake... turns out he was super excited about the tree. And seeing it through my son's eyes, I was suddenly not at all concerned about the fact that Christmas had spilled over into my special day. I couldn't have picked a better birthday cake! Oh, and as if that wasn't enough, my husband bought me doughnuts... cream filled, frosted and with little Christmas tree sprinkles... not at all bothersome when I realized that my husband had managed to track down exactly what I'd told him earlier in the day I was craving. Makes a girl feel pretty special to know her husband understands exactly what she wants (in both purses and doughnuts!)
Turns out any day can be special when it's spent with the right people.
I always hated that my birthday was so close to Christmas. It felt like everything birthday related was diluted with holiday stuff (presents wrapped in snowman paper, gifts that were to be considered for both birthday and Christmas, a time too busy with Christmas parties for anyone to be available for a birthday party). Of course, looking back, I don't believe any one of those things ever actually happened, with the possible exception of the birthday/Christmas joint gift, and that would have meant it was something really huge. I don't doubt for a second that these were the thoughts of a selfish kid/teenager/young adult... it's unlikely that I actually suffered in any way because of my birthday's proximity to Christmas. Nevertheless, this was how I felt.
Fast forward 32 years... with a husband and young son, an Elf on the Shelf, a boat load of hidden presents in the basement, and a serious love of the holiday season... and I'm suddenly feeling like maybe this isn't so bad. Over the last few years I've started to tell myself that everything holiday related is actually about my birthday. I'd been seeing things the wrong way for so long and, now, I've suddenly got it right. It's not about Christmas... it's all about me.
Okay, so that's a little over the top, but nevertheless, just because it's decorated with ornaments and bows, doesn't make it any less special for me. If anything, I'm fortunate to have a birthday surrounded by glitter and lights and people everywhere wishing you 'happy holidays'... a birthday is like a holiday, right?
My husband and I spent the day before my birthday together... went to lunch, got a massage, drove around town singing Christmas carols and finishing our Christmas shopping. There wasn't anything about it that screamed 'birthday', but I loved spending my day with my husband... Christmas shopping isn't something we usually do together. It was about 'Christmas' but it was also about quality time together. I enjoyed every minute! And I really didn't mind his decision to give me my presents a day early... it doesn't hurt that my husband has impeccable taste in purses!
On my actual birthday I received flowers at work, very much a Christmas arrangement and somehow the most beautiful flowers I'd ever received. I was planning to cook dinner, but my husband ordered pizza... sure, he could have cooked, but instead we got to spend more time together because neither of us was stuck slaving over the stove or doing dishes afterward... it was a perfect dinner (and one we didn't have to battle our son over, making the meal so much more enjoyable). My son picked out a 'birthday' cake for me... a monstrous chocolate cake with chocolate frosting... with a Christmas tree on top. My husband says he was adamant about the cake... turns out he was super excited about the tree. And seeing it through my son's eyes, I was suddenly not at all concerned about the fact that Christmas had spilled over into my special day. I couldn't have picked a better birthday cake! Oh, and as if that wasn't enough, my husband bought me doughnuts... cream filled, frosted and with little Christmas tree sprinkles... not at all bothersome when I realized that my husband had managed to track down exactly what I'd told him earlier in the day I was craving. Makes a girl feel pretty special to know her husband understands exactly what she wants (in both purses and doughnuts!)
Turns out any day can be special when it's spent with the right people.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
On the 2nd day of Christmas my true love gave to me...
Dinner on the table when I got home from work...
Okay, so the meal was tacos and didn't require a serious amount of skill, but I have a limited number of days in which I plan to account for all 12 days of Christmas, so this is where I'm fitting this one in :)
First and foremost, have you ever had someone cook you dinner while you were on your way home from work so that when you walked in the door there was no question that you were required to do nothing more than sit down and eat? It's awesome! Make someone do it for you sometime! I'm fortunate enough to have a husband that enjoys cooking and I get this treatment from him far more often than he does from me. I'm a very lucky woman.
Second, the fact that I'm so appreciative of a taco dinner should most definitely not take away from the kind of cook my husband is. Tacos were my suggestion, but he can do far more than ground beef and shredded lettuce. For example, he's the only one who can cook a steak exactly the way I like it (even though the thought of a medium rare steak makes him sick). Others are good... his are amazing! But his skill definitely doesn't end at the grill. He can fry up a pork chop like nobody's business. And would you believe he's a hell of a baker too? He's perfected homemade bread and makes a killer pie. Give him a recipe and he can do it. More frustrating for me, however, is his ability to throw something together with no recipe at all. This is a skill I do not possess. I would say my cooking is mediocre at best, making me appreciate his cooking even more. He's most definitely a keeper!
And I'll take a home cooked meal over two turtle doves any day :)
Okay, so the meal was tacos and didn't require a serious amount of skill, but I have a limited number of days in which I plan to account for all 12 days of Christmas, so this is where I'm fitting this one in :)
First and foremost, have you ever had someone cook you dinner while you were on your way home from work so that when you walked in the door there was no question that you were required to do nothing more than sit down and eat? It's awesome! Make someone do it for you sometime! I'm fortunate enough to have a husband that enjoys cooking and I get this treatment from him far more often than he does from me. I'm a very lucky woman.
Second, the fact that I'm so appreciative of a taco dinner should most definitely not take away from the kind of cook my husband is. Tacos were my suggestion, but he can do far more than ground beef and shredded lettuce. For example, he's the only one who can cook a steak exactly the way I like it (even though the thought of a medium rare steak makes him sick). Others are good... his are amazing! But his skill definitely doesn't end at the grill. He can fry up a pork chop like nobody's business. And would you believe he's a hell of a baker too? He's perfected homemade bread and makes a killer pie. Give him a recipe and he can do it. More frustrating for me, however, is his ability to throw something together with no recipe at all. This is a skill I do not possess. I would say my cooking is mediocre at best, making me appreciate his cooking even more. He's most definitely a keeper!
And I'll take a home cooked meal over two turtle doves any day :)
Monday, December 10, 2012
On the 1st day of Christmas my true love gave to me...
The drive to put my running shoes back on...
An important thing to note about my husband... he dislikes running. I mean, I think he really, really dislikes running. I don't know why he does it. Sure, it's good exercise, but I can't imagine doing something I didn't really enjoy (aside from work, which doesn't count since I get paid to do it... of course, if someone I work with is reading this, then you should know that I'm only kidding and I really, really do enjoy work! ... I digress...). And yet, there he was on Saturday afternoon lacing up his running shoes while I'm curled up on the couch attempting to take a nap.
This is awesome for my highly motivated husband. This is super crappy for me. Maybe it's my competitive nature. Maybe I'm just jealous because running is supposed to be my thing. Or maybe it was just the swift kick in the rear that I needed...
So, on Sunday afternoon, with our son down for his nap, I laced up my own running shoes, threw on the headphones and headed out for a two mile run. And it felt wonderful! I always forget how good it feels to get out there, to work up a sweat, to work hard and to burn a few calories. It was the reminder I needed. I missed running more than I'd realized. Sure, it's only been a few weeks since I last ran, but it's so easy to get lazy... especially as the weather turns cold and it gets dark before I'm even home from work.
Thank goodness for this wonderful, motivated, inspiring man that I am fortunate enough to call my husband. Whether he wanted to or not, he reminded me just how much I need running in my life! I love it!
An important thing to note about my husband... he dislikes running. I mean, I think he really, really dislikes running. I don't know why he does it. Sure, it's good exercise, but I can't imagine doing something I didn't really enjoy (aside from work, which doesn't count since I get paid to do it... of course, if someone I work with is reading this, then you should know that I'm only kidding and I really, really do enjoy work! ... I digress...). And yet, there he was on Saturday afternoon lacing up his running shoes while I'm curled up on the couch attempting to take a nap.
This is awesome for my highly motivated husband. This is super crappy for me. Maybe it's my competitive nature. Maybe I'm just jealous because running is supposed to be my thing. Or maybe it was just the swift kick in the rear that I needed...
So, on Sunday afternoon, with our son down for his nap, I laced up my own running shoes, threw on the headphones and headed out for a two mile run. And it felt wonderful! I always forget how good it feels to get out there, to work up a sweat, to work hard and to burn a few calories. It was the reminder I needed. I missed running more than I'd realized. Sure, it's only been a few weeks since I last ran, but it's so easy to get lazy... especially as the weather turns cold and it gets dark before I'm even home from work.
Thank goodness for this wonderful, motivated, inspiring man that I am fortunate enough to call my husband. Whether he wanted to or not, he reminded me just how much I need running in my life! I love it!
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
A call to action
Identity theft. It's a scary thought and a very serious reality for many people. We all know, as consumers, that we are at risk for this very real and very personal breach of security. But it wasn't until my own encounter with identity theft that a much bigger problem was brought to my attention.
I'm unaware of exactly how criminals can obtain our personal information. I am, however, under the impression that this is far easier to do than most of us even know. I considered myself fairly diligent in monitoring my credit. For example, the government requires that each of the credit reporting agencies permit you to request one free credit report every 12 months (you can do this by going to www.annualcreditreport.com). And I did this annually. I'd request my reports, print them out and review them carefully to be sure nothing seemed out of place. This is all well and good, but what about the 364 days between now and when I can request my report again? Of course, there are a million credit monitoring products out there. I have no experience with any of them (pretty obvious statement given my recent problems), so that research is up to you. But this call to action isn't really about the initial theft of ones identity. My concern at this point is how retailers are handling the information provided to them on credit applications.
The call I received today was from the New Accounts Department at Target. They were calling me to verify some information on the application I completed on Sunday for their Target Red Card. While I will admit that I shop at Target on a regular basis, I knew for a fact that I wasn't there on Sunday and that I absolutely didn't apply for a credit card. When I discovered the application was made in Oklahoma City, I knew my problem was a little bigger than I was prepared for. I was informed that the application was flagged because the name on the application didn't exactly match the name on my credit report. After several minutes of verifying that the thieves had all of my personal information (name, date of birth, address and social security number), I was told that Target had a copy of their driver's license and would provide it to police if it was requested. A whole new set of concerns sunk in at that moment and I asked if the information on the driver's license was also mine. Shockingly, the answer was no.
What?!?! So, you're telling me that someone provided you with all of my personal information and, when asked for ID, they produced identification that had a different name, address and date of birth on it?!? Yes, that was exactly what she was telling me. She proceeded to explain that, just because the person's identification and credit application information don't match, that does not keep them from processing the application. The ONLY reason this application was flagged as potentially fraudulent was because the dumb ass attempting to steal my identity had spelled my name wrong.
At this point, the only logical explanation I can come up with is that they are required to process all applications in order to avoid any kind of lawsuit suggesting that they might be prejudiced in any way. But shouldn't this be common sense?
When all is said and done with this entire matter, I can assure you that I will be writing a strongly worded letter to the fine people at Target to let them know my feelings on this issue. Please don't get me wrong... it is highly unlikely that I will ever stop shopping there... I love Target. My 'call to action' is not for a boycott of the store. But I do think that changes need to be made in how they process credit applications. By handling them this way, they are greatly increasing the risk of identity theft... and pissing off their loyal patrons for their stupidity.
Of course, this begs the bigger question... how many other retailers handle credit applications in this manner? You'd better believe I'll be doing my research to find out whether this is a nationwide standard or if it is only certain retailers. And if this is simply the standard set by the industry, I can assure you that the fine people who make our laws and set our regulations will be getting a few letters from me as well.
So my call to action is this: Do your research, know how the system works and, if you find other retailers that handle these things in this manner, please speak up, write a letter and let these establishments know that, as well-informed consumers, we don't appreciate their lack of due diligence when it comes to matters related to identity theft.
I'm unaware of exactly how criminals can obtain our personal information. I am, however, under the impression that this is far easier to do than most of us even know. I considered myself fairly diligent in monitoring my credit. For example, the government requires that each of the credit reporting agencies permit you to request one free credit report every 12 months (you can do this by going to www.annualcreditreport.com). And I did this annually. I'd request my reports, print them out and review them carefully to be sure nothing seemed out of place. This is all well and good, but what about the 364 days between now and when I can request my report again? Of course, there are a million credit monitoring products out there. I have no experience with any of them (pretty obvious statement given my recent problems), so that research is up to you. But this call to action isn't really about the initial theft of ones identity. My concern at this point is how retailers are handling the information provided to them on credit applications.
The call I received today was from the New Accounts Department at Target. They were calling me to verify some information on the application I completed on Sunday for their Target Red Card. While I will admit that I shop at Target on a regular basis, I knew for a fact that I wasn't there on Sunday and that I absolutely didn't apply for a credit card. When I discovered the application was made in Oklahoma City, I knew my problem was a little bigger than I was prepared for. I was informed that the application was flagged because the name on the application didn't exactly match the name on my credit report. After several minutes of verifying that the thieves had all of my personal information (name, date of birth, address and social security number), I was told that Target had a copy of their driver's license and would provide it to police if it was requested. A whole new set of concerns sunk in at that moment and I asked if the information on the driver's license was also mine. Shockingly, the answer was no.
What?!?! So, you're telling me that someone provided you with all of my personal information and, when asked for ID, they produced identification that had a different name, address and date of birth on it?!? Yes, that was exactly what she was telling me. She proceeded to explain that, just because the person's identification and credit application information don't match, that does not keep them from processing the application. The ONLY reason this application was flagged as potentially fraudulent was because the dumb ass attempting to steal my identity had spelled my name wrong.
At this point, the only logical explanation I can come up with is that they are required to process all applications in order to avoid any kind of lawsuit suggesting that they might be prejudiced in any way. But shouldn't this be common sense?
When all is said and done with this entire matter, I can assure you that I will be writing a strongly worded letter to the fine people at Target to let them know my feelings on this issue. Please don't get me wrong... it is highly unlikely that I will ever stop shopping there... I love Target. My 'call to action' is not for a boycott of the store. But I do think that changes need to be made in how they process credit applications. By handling them this way, they are greatly increasing the risk of identity theft... and pissing off their loyal patrons for their stupidity.
Of course, this begs the bigger question... how many other retailers handle credit applications in this manner? You'd better believe I'll be doing my research to find out whether this is a nationwide standard or if it is only certain retailers. And if this is simply the standard set by the industry, I can assure you that the fine people who make our laws and set our regulations will be getting a few letters from me as well.
So my call to action is this: Do your research, know how the system works and, if you find other retailers that handle these things in this manner, please speak up, write a letter and let these establishments know that, as well-informed consumers, we don't appreciate their lack of due diligence when it comes to matters related to identity theft.
Monday, November 19, 2012
Learning something new
Have you learned something new recently? I have... and it's a pretty cool feeling.
I don't claim to be an expert on anything. Well, that's not exactly true... I suppose I like to give people the impression that I'm an expert on lots of things. But I don't think anyone actually believes it... I know I certainly don't. While I love to be the person that people come to for answers, which seems to be the case far more often at the office than at home (I'm capable of admitting that my hubby is the expert of most things at home), I can also admit that there's plenty I don't know. Plenty. (Don't tell my husband that... or my boss, for that matter.)
But expert or not, I at least like to have a basic understanding of things that affect my life and my family. Which is exactly why I took a gun safety course. Sure, we'd all like to believe that this isn't something we all need to know about, but fact of the matter is there are unsafe places in this world... sadly, this is sometimes true of our own neighborhoods. So while my husband is a gun owner, proud to have learned about hunting at a young age and already looking forward to one day passing on his knowledge to our son, I didn't grow up with guns in my home and I didn't know anyone that liked to hunt. When my husband and I first moved in together, this was a huge hurdle for me. Surely I couldn't ask him to give up something he enjoyed (that's something we women usually wait until marriage for), but it always made me uncomfortable. I'd call it a 'healthy fear' of guns. I couldn't even claim to know the basics. So shooting for the first time was scary... kinda cool, but way scary.
Once our son was born I only had one stipulation to keeping guns in the house - we needed a gun safe so that they were always out of reach. Easy peasy... problem solved. Truth be told, I felt safer having them locked up anyway.
And then there were a few break-ins. Three in one night, all on our street, the closest one just 2 doors down. Talk about hitting close to home! And that's when it really sunk in... just how unsafe your own home can be. And here we are, gun owners... and me with no knowledge of what to do with them. Someday in the not too distant future my husband would teach our son about gun safety and our 'little boy' would know more than I did. God forbid our son ever ask me a question on the subject and I would have to say "I don't know". Not acceptable.
So yesterday was the day I decided to learn what I needed to learn... partly for safety, partly to know what to do if anything ever went wrong, and partly to just feel comfortable with these things in our home. And I can't even begin to tell you how glad I am that I did!
The class was taught by Commence Firearms Training Academy in Cleveland. Their staff was amazing and, within the first hour, I already felt more comfortable with guns than I had when I walked in the door... and it would be another 7 hours before we had any hands-on training. It was a long day - 12 hours of training and information - but it was presented in a way that made it so easy to understand... and amazingly enough, the day flew by. When all was said and done, I left there feeling like a completely new person. Like I knew exactly what I would need to do if the situation ever presented itself. Needless to say, the hope is that it never does... but at least I now have the knowledge I need to feel safe in my own home.
So, no, I'm still no expert on the subject. But I was reminded just how important it is to continue learning new things. Times change, people change and our world changes around us on a continuous basis. Sometimes you have no choice but to adapt in order to move on. For me, this is what allowed me to feel safe again.
Aside from feeling safer, I thoroughly enjoyed learning something new. I don't believe we appreciate this enough when we're in school... especially when it's something we have to do as opposed to something we choose. But it's a really good feeling to gain new knowledge, to discover something you never knew existed and to know that, with a little bit of time and effort, you can walk away a better/stronger/smarter person than when you started.
If you have the desire to learn something new, don't wait... learning can be so much fun :)
I don't claim to be an expert on anything. Well, that's not exactly true... I suppose I like to give people the impression that I'm an expert on lots of things. But I don't think anyone actually believes it... I know I certainly don't. While I love to be the person that people come to for answers, which seems to be the case far more often at the office than at home (I'm capable of admitting that my hubby is the expert of most things at home), I can also admit that there's plenty I don't know. Plenty. (Don't tell my husband that... or my boss, for that matter.)
But expert or not, I at least like to have a basic understanding of things that affect my life and my family. Which is exactly why I took a gun safety course. Sure, we'd all like to believe that this isn't something we all need to know about, but fact of the matter is there are unsafe places in this world... sadly, this is sometimes true of our own neighborhoods. So while my husband is a gun owner, proud to have learned about hunting at a young age and already looking forward to one day passing on his knowledge to our son, I didn't grow up with guns in my home and I didn't know anyone that liked to hunt. When my husband and I first moved in together, this was a huge hurdle for me. Surely I couldn't ask him to give up something he enjoyed (that's something we women usually wait until marriage for), but it always made me uncomfortable. I'd call it a 'healthy fear' of guns. I couldn't even claim to know the basics. So shooting for the first time was scary... kinda cool, but way scary.
Once our son was born I only had one stipulation to keeping guns in the house - we needed a gun safe so that they were always out of reach. Easy peasy... problem solved. Truth be told, I felt safer having them locked up anyway.
And then there were a few break-ins. Three in one night, all on our street, the closest one just 2 doors down. Talk about hitting close to home! And that's when it really sunk in... just how unsafe your own home can be. And here we are, gun owners... and me with no knowledge of what to do with them. Someday in the not too distant future my husband would teach our son about gun safety and our 'little boy' would know more than I did. God forbid our son ever ask me a question on the subject and I would have to say "I don't know". Not acceptable.
So yesterday was the day I decided to learn what I needed to learn... partly for safety, partly to know what to do if anything ever went wrong, and partly to just feel comfortable with these things in our home. And I can't even begin to tell you how glad I am that I did!
The class was taught by Commence Firearms Training Academy in Cleveland. Their staff was amazing and, within the first hour, I already felt more comfortable with guns than I had when I walked in the door... and it would be another 7 hours before we had any hands-on training. It was a long day - 12 hours of training and information - but it was presented in a way that made it so easy to understand... and amazingly enough, the day flew by. When all was said and done, I left there feeling like a completely new person. Like I knew exactly what I would need to do if the situation ever presented itself. Needless to say, the hope is that it never does... but at least I now have the knowledge I need to feel safe in my own home.
So, no, I'm still no expert on the subject. But I was reminded just how important it is to continue learning new things. Times change, people change and our world changes around us on a continuous basis. Sometimes you have no choice but to adapt in order to move on. For me, this is what allowed me to feel safe again.
Aside from feeling safer, I thoroughly enjoyed learning something new. I don't believe we appreciate this enough when we're in school... especially when it's something we have to do as opposed to something we choose. But it's a really good feeling to gain new knowledge, to discover something you never knew existed and to know that, with a little bit of time and effort, you can walk away a better/stronger/smarter person than when you started.
If you have the desire to learn something new, don't wait... learning can be so much fun :)
Monday, November 12, 2012
Girls on the Run - 5k
It's hard to believe just how fast 10 weeks can go! But here we are... at the end of our 10 week fall 2012 season of Girls on the Run! And what an amazing season it's been :)
This program is so much fun! I believe I covered all of the basics in this post: Girls on the Run. Looking back and reading how I felt about the program just 2 weeks into the season doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of where I am today.
So where am I? I'm inspired, uplifted, motivated, optimistic... I want to set bigger goals, try harder, be a better person, set a good example... I want to say more, do more, be more... I want everything this life has to offer... and then some :)
I suppose I should backtrack for just a moment and share my thoughts and experiences from the last 8 weeks of the season. I will admit that I found myself a little frustrated at times... maybe more so with myself than with these 11 wonderful young ladies. This was my first attempt at working with girls this age and I'd completely forgotten what it was like to be one of them (20 years has a way of doing that). I had to remind myself that these girls weren't here to 'train'. They didn't join the program to become athletes. They were there to learn a few life lessons, get some exercise and learn about achieving goals. And they were there to have fun. What they hadn't signed up for was teaching an adult a few lessons about living life, enjoying small victories and a whole new level of patience. It would appear they reached their own goals and a whole lot more. By the end of this season I think I finally figured out that I'd had a lot to learn myself... and maybe, just maybe, I'd gotten more out of the season than they did.
So once I learned a few of my own life lessons, I settled into my position as Running Buddy and gave it everything I had.
The practice 5k was a week before the real deal and, after our visit from Hurricane Sandy, the day was dark, cold and rainy. Not ideal weather for a bunch of ten and eleven year olds to run 3.1 miles. But, let me tell you, they were troopers! My job was to try to keep everyone moving and, in the end, I managed to spend a little time with almost everyone on the team. It's been tough for me to figure out what motivates these girls to work hard, but I found that most of them truly did have a desire to do well and, even though it was hard, there was far less walking than there had been at most practices and, when they crossed that finish line, there were some seriously huge smiles. All of the girls who finished early on gathered at the finish line to cheer on the rest of the team and each of them received a certificate for completing a 5k. After 8 weeks of training, they were ready to run their end of the season race.
So yesterday, November 11th, was the season ending 5k at Blossom Music Center. With over 1,000 participants, these girls ran in a race larger than most races I've run. And it was like no other race I've ever seen. Everyone was encouraged to make tiaras (mad props to the dads who participated in this activity), spray paint their hair and, in all ways possible, show their individuality while still being part of a team. It was amazing to see these girls encouraging one another, being positive and having a great time doing it. All of the participants in the GOTR program were given race bibs with the #1 (because we're all #1 no matter how we finish)... everyone else got regularly numbered race bibs. And each team had something special to signify that they were a team (Team Avon Lake had neon green bandannas... every one of which I believe was worn a different way). There were tutus, headbands, streamers, face paint and scarves, so even though every program participant in the Greater Summit region wore a navy blue Girls on the Run race shirt, each team and each runner could stand out in the crowd. I can't wait to see those photos!
As a Running Buddy, it was my job to stick with a few girls for the entire race. Lily and Madison asked if I would run with them and I gladly accepted... it took me back a few years to when kids picked teams... and I can't tell you how honored I was to be first pick for these girls. Talk about personality! They have a way of keeping you entertained for hours!
So at the start of the race, the three of us stuck together... both uphill and down... and kept each other going. Just a little shy of half way, Madison decided that a slightly slower pace would be better for her, so another coach stepped in to run the rest of the race with Lily and I had the pleasure of sticking it out with Madison. Talk about a girl with drive. For someone her age, I would have expected complaints and requests to stop. But not Madison. As many times as I'd seen her walk in practice, she seemed to have brought her A game to this race! This course had rolling hills and, coming from the Cleveland area, we're just not used to anything like it. But Madison continued to impress me with her effort throughout the entire race. As difficult as it was and as much as she admitted that she was struggling with those hills, she powered through every one of them and didn't walk a single step of the entire race. She even had a little something extra saved up for the finish line. Every one of our girls finished the race and gave it everything they had. There were girls that walked parts of the race that refused to walk through the finish line and gave it every last bit of effort they had for a strong finish, where family and friends were cheering them on, there were dads with tears in their eyes as their daughters finished their first race, and there were girls everywhere smiling ear to ear that were so proud of their accomplishments as they posed for pictures with family and friends and celebrated their amazing victory. There were hugs and laughter all around us! It was a race environment like none I'd ever experienced before... and now I simply can't wait to experience it again!
Team Avon Lake: You are an inspiring group of young women and have changed me in ways I never imagined! Here's to you, an amazing season and hopefully more to come!
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| Photo by Girls on the Run of Greater Summit |
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Girls on the Run
Several weeks ago I signed up to volunteer as a running buddy for the Avon Lake team of Girls on the Run of Greater Summit. We're now 2 weeks into the 10-week season... and I'm hooked!
For those of you who don't know what Girls on the Run is all about, here's a great place to learn more: http://www.girlsontherun.org/What-We-Do
My first experience with Girls on the Run was as a SoleMate (an awesome name given to those raising funds for the GOTR program) while training for the Cleveland Marathon. I did my best to hit up all of my friends and neighbors for donations. GOTR's minimum goal was listed at $262... just $10 per mile. I felt I could improve upon that and set my personal fundraising goal at $500. I should have given my family, friends and coworkers more credit... I managed to raise over $1,400 for Girls on the Run. And, not that my friends aren't generous to begin with, but I have to assume that the nature of this program hit home with several of those people who donated, making it very easy to convince them to open their wallets and checkbooks :) I very much appreciated the support and am now more convinced than ever that their donations went to a worthy cause.
At first, I didn't know much about the program... just the basics. But the more I learned, the more excited I became to play a larger role in Girls on the Run. Raising funds was great, but raising awareness and working directly with these girls was something I really looked forward to. And now that I'm a part of it, I can't wait to do even more.
And this is just about the time when insanity sets in... I'm not very good at baby steps... I like skipping directly to the most elaborate and complicated ending. I've already daydreamed about coaching my own team, starting my own council, operating my own 501(c)3 organization... see what I mean? Maybe I could just start with completing my first season?
But that's not really what this program is all about, is it? It's about teaching these girls that they can be themselves (insanity and all) and dream big (really, really big) and set their sights on the unimaginable (see above) and that anything is possible if you work hard enough. So while I will admit that I do need to work on having patience when it comes to some of these things, I am unwilling to consider that any of these ideas are beyond my reach.
So, for now, I will attempt to slow down... and reduce my leaps and bounds to more manageable baby steps... I will simply point my feet in the direction of my wildest dreams and plan to get there at a slightly more manageable pace.
"Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon."
For those of you who don't know what Girls on the Run is all about, here's a great place to learn more: http://www.girlsontherun.org/What-We-Do
My first experience with Girls on the Run was as a SoleMate (an awesome name given to those raising funds for the GOTR program) while training for the Cleveland Marathon. I did my best to hit up all of my friends and neighbors for donations. GOTR's minimum goal was listed at $262... just $10 per mile. I felt I could improve upon that and set my personal fundraising goal at $500. I should have given my family, friends and coworkers more credit... I managed to raise over $1,400 for Girls on the Run. And, not that my friends aren't generous to begin with, but I have to assume that the nature of this program hit home with several of those people who donated, making it very easy to convince them to open their wallets and checkbooks :) I very much appreciated the support and am now more convinced than ever that their donations went to a worthy cause.
At first, I didn't know much about the program... just the basics. But the more I learned, the more excited I became to play a larger role in Girls on the Run. Raising funds was great, but raising awareness and working directly with these girls was something I really looked forward to. And now that I'm a part of it, I can't wait to do even more.
And this is just about the time when insanity sets in... I'm not very good at baby steps... I like skipping directly to the most elaborate and complicated ending. I've already daydreamed about coaching my own team, starting my own council, operating my own 501(c)3 organization... see what I mean? Maybe I could just start with completing my first season?
But that's not really what this program is all about, is it? It's about teaching these girls that they can be themselves (insanity and all) and dream big (really, really big) and set their sights on the unimaginable (see above) and that anything is possible if you work hard enough. So while I will admit that I do need to work on having patience when it comes to some of these things, I am unwilling to consider that any of these ideas are beyond my reach.
So, for now, I will attempt to slow down... and reduce my leaps and bounds to more manageable baby steps... I will simply point my feet in the direction of my wildest dreams and plan to get there at a slightly more manageable pace.
"Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon."
Monday, September 17, 2012
Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure [9/15/12]
An all around amazing day... the weather, the race, the crowd, the shirts, the socks... and the inspiration!
I haven't raced since the marathon and I couldn't have picked a better way to get back into racing mode. Team Dee is one amazing group of people! And watching the survivors finish, hearing each of their names announced... there's nothing else like it. What a wonderful group of women (and men) all fighting to find a cure for breast cancer. I'm so proud to be a part of it!
Thanks to Julie for gathering the team and designing our awesome shirts [Fight like a girl]! Based on the number of strangers taking pics, I'd say they were a crowd favorite! And to Maureen for tracking down the sweet socks! I'm impressed the boys were man enough to wear them too!
As far as the actual race was concerned, I felt really good at the start, but took the first half mile a little slow just to be safe... not that there were many options... the number of people downtown for this event was absolutely amazing and, with that kind of crowd, there was no way to take off too fast! But, once we got going, I decided to see what I was capable of. It certainly wasn't my fastest 5k, but I'm not at all disappointed with my 26:35 time! Mile 1 was around 9:00, mile 2 around 8:30 and the final 1.1 around 9:05... An excellent starting point for getting back into shape :)
Great peeps, great event... and a great post-race breakfast at Sweet Melissa's. Sign me up for next year!
I haven't raced since the marathon and I couldn't have picked a better way to get back into racing mode. Team Dee is one amazing group of people! And watching the survivors finish, hearing each of their names announced... there's nothing else like it. What a wonderful group of women (and men) all fighting to find a cure for breast cancer. I'm so proud to be a part of it!
Thanks to Julie for gathering the team and designing our awesome shirts [Fight like a girl]! Based on the number of strangers taking pics, I'd say they were a crowd favorite! And to Maureen for tracking down the sweet socks! I'm impressed the boys were man enough to wear them too!
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| Team Dee before the race |
As far as the actual race was concerned, I felt really good at the start, but took the first half mile a little slow just to be safe... not that there were many options... the number of people downtown for this event was absolutely amazing and, with that kind of crowd, there was no way to take off too fast! But, once we got going, I decided to see what I was capable of. It certainly wasn't my fastest 5k, but I'm not at all disappointed with my 26:35 time! Mile 1 was around 9:00, mile 2 around 8:30 and the final 1.1 around 9:05... An excellent starting point for getting back into shape :)
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| The girls - after the race |
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Starting over...
About 5 weeks after deciding that what I was battling in my hip was likely a stress fracture, I received an email from a friend asking if anyone was interested in joining her team for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure on September 15th... just 6 weeks away. After reading her story, I knew I wanted to be a part of the team. I also knew that it meant cutting short the recovery time I promised myself I would take. Hmmm... what to do, what to do?
It took all of 30 seconds to come to the conclusion that I really wanted to run this race. So I responded that she could count me in, registered online, hit up my awesome husband for a donation, then... nothing. Even though my hip was feeling a million times better than it had been, I knew that 5 weeks was not enough time to fully recover and that the smart thing to do was to take off as much time as I possibly could to assure that I wouldn't end up back where I started and have to begin the recovery process again. So, in the meantime, I read about running, signed up for a volunteer program involving running and spent my days dreaming about how it would feel to run again. I gave myself 4 more weeks' recovery time (instead of 7), then hit the pavement.
Yikes! I managed to convince a friend to run with me for my first time back and I'm fairly certain it was the only reason I kept going for the entire 2 mile run. Thank goodness for Jaime! I was shockingly out of shape and the only motivation I had was to keep up with her so that we could continue our conversation. I somehow managed to ask enough questions to keep her talking the entire time, which allowed me to focus solely on breathing... a very important part of the running process.
Yay for getting back to running! Boo for starting over :(
I ran another 2 miles the other day... it took about 19 minutes... and I'd given it my all. I'm truly not worried about the time, but it was still hard to accept just how far my fitness level had fallen. I'm a marathon runner, for crying out loud... how can 2 miles be this difficult?
There's no question that race day will be tough. But the plan is to run as a team and it's most definitely for a good cause. It's been decided that, instead of sticking around for the awards, we'll be heading out after the race to grab breakfast. Oddly enough, with the promise of food after the finish, I feel slightly better about my odds of finishing.
I'm really glad my first race back won't be a competitive one, but I'm not going to lie, I'm still a little nervous about the distance... I haven't run more than 2 miles since May!
But, believe it or not, at this very moment, as I write this post, I've come to one amazing realization... this is exactly where I was last summer... just starting out, no training under my belt, out of shape and unsure of how it was all going to work out. This is the point where I made the commitment to run a marathon. This is how I felt at the beginning of my journey. It really was the start of the most incredible year. And if the coming year ends up anything like it, I can't possibly be worried about the fact that I had to start over... I'm just too damn excited about the journey ahead.
It took all of 30 seconds to come to the conclusion that I really wanted to run this race. So I responded that she could count me in, registered online, hit up my awesome husband for a donation, then... nothing. Even though my hip was feeling a million times better than it had been, I knew that 5 weeks was not enough time to fully recover and that the smart thing to do was to take off as much time as I possibly could to assure that I wouldn't end up back where I started and have to begin the recovery process again. So, in the meantime, I read about running, signed up for a volunteer program involving running and spent my days dreaming about how it would feel to run again. I gave myself 4 more weeks' recovery time (instead of 7), then hit the pavement.
Yikes! I managed to convince a friend to run with me for my first time back and I'm fairly certain it was the only reason I kept going for the entire 2 mile run. Thank goodness for Jaime! I was shockingly out of shape and the only motivation I had was to keep up with her so that we could continue our conversation. I somehow managed to ask enough questions to keep her talking the entire time, which allowed me to focus solely on breathing... a very important part of the running process.
Yay for getting back to running! Boo for starting over :(
I ran another 2 miles the other day... it took about 19 minutes... and I'd given it my all. I'm truly not worried about the time, but it was still hard to accept just how far my fitness level had fallen. I'm a marathon runner, for crying out loud... how can 2 miles be this difficult?
There's no question that race day will be tough. But the plan is to run as a team and it's most definitely for a good cause. It's been decided that, instead of sticking around for the awards, we'll be heading out after the race to grab breakfast. Oddly enough, with the promise of food after the finish, I feel slightly better about my odds of finishing.
I'm really glad my first race back won't be a competitive one, but I'm not going to lie, I'm still a little nervous about the distance... I haven't run more than 2 miles since May!
But, believe it or not, at this very moment, as I write this post, I've come to one amazing realization... this is exactly where I was last summer... just starting out, no training under my belt, out of shape and unsure of how it was all going to work out. This is the point where I made the commitment to run a marathon. This is how I felt at the beginning of my journey. It really was the start of the most incredible year. And if the coming year ends up anything like it, I can't possibly be worried about the fact that I had to start over... I'm just too damn excited about the journey ahead.
Friday, August 3, 2012
Being perfect
Many people don't know this, but being perfect takes a lot of work. Some mistake it as an easy task that comes naturally to others. It's not. It's hard work. It takes a lot of time and patience. It requires constant attention. Not that I would know...
Of course, some might argue that no one is perfect. I suppose that depends on how one defines perfection. I have moments were I think of it as the unattainable goal that, no matter what all of us non-perfect people say, we're all, deep down, trying to reach. Then there are days when I think that being imperfect is what makes us perfect. I am who I am meant to be, flaws and all, making me the perfect version of myself.
There are so many factors that play into how someone feels about themselves. I believe magazines and advertisers provide an image of perfection that, to young girls especially, makes one incredibly uncomfortable in their own skin. Fortunately, as an adult, I don't know that I put nearly as much weight on those images... I believe it's important for teens to see a more realistic image of beauty, but I find that, in my old age (kidding, of course) I've attained enough wisdom to know that this is simply not an image anyone can live up to. And, deep down, I have an understanding that every one of those models with 'perfect' bodies have their own doubts and self-esteem issues... we just can't see them through the glossy magazine spread.
As an adult we realize that maybe the perfect body doesn't exist... at least not after a few kids and what I like to consider basic necessities... a few glasses of wine, a couple beers, a pan of brownies... they can go a long way in relieving stress and I'll take a few extra pounds over cutting that out of my diet any day :) Plus, with limited time and a busy schedule, I find matching clothes and make-up don't always make the list of daily priorities. Fortunately for me, having established that what you look like does not make you perfect, I've managed to save myself countless hours of primping. (My apologies to the fine employees of the local grocery store who occasionally catch me in my pjs and a baseball hat - no offense, but you just don't rank high enough to justify the use of a hairdryer.)
So why does being perfect still seem to matter? Why do I still feel like I'm not living up to some kind of crazy standard? It's certainly not like anyone has given me the impression that I'm not good enough. Am I the only one that feels the pressure to be something better?
So, after mulling it over for a few days I realize that I try my very best to give people the impression that I am perfect. I'm not suggesting anyone believes it... but the effort is still there. I never go out of my way to admit my mistakes (mainly because I rarely make them), I put makeup on every morning before work (not that it's needed, because clearly I have flawless skin), I color my hair (even though there's no reason to dislike my incredibly boring natural brown), I post to facebook how much I love my life (because it's obviously perfect) and, of course, if anyone ever asks, my son is the most amazing kid you could ever meet (because, even though he's a toddler, he just doesn't seem to be affected by the terrible 2s). And so I give some serious thought to my half truths and small exaggerations and realize that maybe, just maybe, I'm not the only one trying to put out the 'my life is seriously perfect' vibe... and I suddenly start to feel a heck of a lot better about myself.
I'd love to challenge everyone to be themselves, even if only for a short while, and try it on for size... see how it feels... and maybe find that being 100% yourself isn't all that bad. But, who would make the leap first? Am I strong enough to do it without following someone else's lead? Does my admitting imperfection make it impossible to ever go back to pretending otherwise?
Not that it matters... because I'm not pretending... after all, I'm clearly perfect in every way :)
Of course, some might argue that no one is perfect. I suppose that depends on how one defines perfection. I have moments were I think of it as the unattainable goal that, no matter what all of us non-perfect people say, we're all, deep down, trying to reach. Then there are days when I think that being imperfect is what makes us perfect. I am who I am meant to be, flaws and all, making me the perfect version of myself.
There are so many factors that play into how someone feels about themselves. I believe magazines and advertisers provide an image of perfection that, to young girls especially, makes one incredibly uncomfortable in their own skin. Fortunately, as an adult, I don't know that I put nearly as much weight on those images... I believe it's important for teens to see a more realistic image of beauty, but I find that, in my old age (kidding, of course) I've attained enough wisdom to know that this is simply not an image anyone can live up to. And, deep down, I have an understanding that every one of those models with 'perfect' bodies have their own doubts and self-esteem issues... we just can't see them through the glossy magazine spread.
As an adult we realize that maybe the perfect body doesn't exist... at least not after a few kids and what I like to consider basic necessities... a few glasses of wine, a couple beers, a pan of brownies... they can go a long way in relieving stress and I'll take a few extra pounds over cutting that out of my diet any day :) Plus, with limited time and a busy schedule, I find matching clothes and make-up don't always make the list of daily priorities. Fortunately for me, having established that what you look like does not make you perfect, I've managed to save myself countless hours of primping. (My apologies to the fine employees of the local grocery store who occasionally catch me in my pjs and a baseball hat - no offense, but you just don't rank high enough to justify the use of a hairdryer.)
So why does being perfect still seem to matter? Why do I still feel like I'm not living up to some kind of crazy standard? It's certainly not like anyone has given me the impression that I'm not good enough. Am I the only one that feels the pressure to be something better?
So, after mulling it over for a few days I realize that I try my very best to give people the impression that I am perfect. I'm not suggesting anyone believes it... but the effort is still there. I never go out of my way to admit my mistakes (mainly because I rarely make them), I put makeup on every morning before work (not that it's needed, because clearly I have flawless skin), I color my hair (even though there's no reason to dislike my incredibly boring natural brown), I post to facebook how much I love my life (because it's obviously perfect) and, of course, if anyone ever asks, my son is the most amazing kid you could ever meet (because, even though he's a toddler, he just doesn't seem to be affected by the terrible 2s). And so I give some serious thought to my half truths and small exaggerations and realize that maybe, just maybe, I'm not the only one trying to put out the 'my life is seriously perfect' vibe... and I suddenly start to feel a heck of a lot better about myself.
I'd love to challenge everyone to be themselves, even if only for a short while, and try it on for size... see how it feels... and maybe find that being 100% yourself isn't all that bad. But, who would make the leap first? Am I strong enough to do it without following someone else's lead? Does my admitting imperfection make it impossible to ever go back to pretending otherwise?
Not that it matters... because I'm not pretending... after all, I'm clearly perfect in every way :)
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Beyond flattered... Beautiful Blogger Award
I'd say I'm at a loss for words, but after a few days of working on this post, the one thing it is not lacking is words...
In getting caught up on reading a few of my favorite blogs, I found the most flattering bit of information... a fellow blogger nominated me for the Beautiful Blogger Award! The idea behind the Beautiful Blogger Award is to recognize some of the blogs we read and recognize the bloggers for their hard work and inspiration. Seriously? Me? Wow! Talk about compliment... huge... HUGE compliment!
So here's how it works...
*Rules*
1) Copy the Beautiful Blogger Award logo and place it in your post.
2) Thank the person who nominated you and link back to their blog.
3) Tell 7 things about yourself.
4) Nominate 7 other bloggers for their own Beautiful Blogger Award, and comment on their blogs to let them know.
So I begin with a huge thank you to Tonya (Tee_2_Run) for the nomination! You are, indeed, a beautiful blogger! Your determination and strength continue to inspire me! Keep up the great work and best of luck with your fall racing schedule... I can't wait to hear about all of your accomplishments!
As far as 7 things about myself... here goes nothing...
1) I'm a nerd... more so than I like to let people believe. I love reading (I started a book club last year and it's quickly become one of my very favorite things) and math (I love any project that allows me to use an Excel spreadsheet). If I can turn it into a checklist or spreadsheet, I'm a happy camper. Truth be told, I'm not sure I can put into words how much of a nerd I really am... so we'll just leave it at that.
2) I'm gearing up to volunteer for Girls on the Run this fall. It's an amazing organization focused on girls 8 to 13 years old and teaches them to be confident and healthy while incorporating training for a 5K. I'm so excited to be a part of this wonderful program and will most definitely be posting about my experience in the coming months.
3) My husband is my hero. He inspires me daily, whether he knows it or not. I'm not so great at always telling him this, but I suppose he'll know it if he still reads my blog :) He's a hard worker, incredibly smart and an amazing father to our son. This Sunday we will celebrate 8 years of marriage... it's hard to believe how quickly it's gone by! Through the years we've found that marriage can be a lot of work... and very much worth the effort!
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| My husband, my hero! |
4) I have a two and a half year old son named Collin. He's a handful! And I love almost every minute I get to spend with him (I say almost because, let's be honest, we could all do without the tantrums of a toddler). He is constantly entertaining us with the crazy things he says and does and, while I don't doubt that the stresses of parenthood will age me beyond my years, I wouldn't trade the experience of motherhood for anything. Even at his very worst, he is absolutely the best!
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| At Disney World eariler this year |
5) I'm currently obsessed with home projects and all things craft related. I imagine many people in my life are getting tired of hearing about it. I fully blame pinterest for this recent obsession. My current projects include: redecorating our spare bedroom into a reading room (nerd alert), repurposing some canvas wall art, framing our bathroom mirrors, making a felt board for my son, and so many other little crafty projects that I couldn't even begin to describe. Not only are there not enough hours in the day for all of these projects, but I also have one serious problem with all of them... I'm actually not all that crafty. DIY is not really my thing, so it's hard to say if any of these things will ever get done. The planning I'm great at... the execution... well, that remains to be seen.
6) Everything scares me. When I think about facing my fears and trying something new, it doesn't have to be anything extreme. Sure, I do want to jump out of an airplane (which is insane given my serious fear of heights), but I'm also afraid of not jumping out of an airplane. Odd as it may sound, I truly fear reaching the end of my life and feeling like I hadn't done everything I could have. Then again, it scares the crap out of me to tell someone I plan to do something and then not end up doing it. There's a little bit of fear in almost everything I do (or don't do) which means I feel like I'm facing my fears all the time. But that's a good thing, right?
7) I've never been happier! A lot of people say it... even me... when they don't mean it. But this year, for the first time in my life, I'm comfortable in my own skin. I wake up happy (well, maybe after a cup of coffee) and I go to bed appreciating just how good I have it. I'm surrounded by people I care about, I have a good job, my family is healthy... and I wouldn't change a thing. It's nice to sit back and give thanks for all you have from time to time... this was my excuse to do just that :)
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| My amazing family! |
...And the Beautiful Blogger Award goes to...
Kristy (Inspirunning) - you are my hero when it comes to all things running! Without you, I don't know that I would have been able to complete the Marathon in May. Your guidance and encouraging words during my training were invaluable and I can't thank you enough. Keep up the amazing work!
Jackie (jackie's joy) - a dear friend, fellow mom, amazing photographer (jreissphotography) and all around wonderful person - your blog inspires me daily to do more. It's a beautiful reminder of the simple joys in raising children and trying new things and is 100% responsible for me starting my own blog. I've rediscovered my love of writing and have you to thank for that.
Becky (Deep Thoughts by Beck) - I know it has been some time since your last blog post... but I check back from time to time just in case you've decided to update the world on your life :) I recently read your book "Me and the Ugly C" and found myself both laughing and crying at the same time. Your strength through such a difficult time inspired me in ways I never imagined. And I keep my fingers crossed that, one day soon, you'll get back to your blog and enlighten the world on where you've been and what you've been up to... and I'll look forward to reading all about it.
Lydia (Lydia Netzer) - I stumbled upon your blog a few months ago when a friend shared one of your posts on facebook. After reading it, I immediately shared it again with my friends. It's a must read for any married couple (15 Ways to Stay Married for 15 Years). Your advice was both entertaining and insightful and I found myself suddenly inspired to be a better wife and mother. In reading further, I discovered that you were a writer and that your book "Shine, Shine, Shine" would soon be released (it was released on July 17th and I can't wait to read it!). I've always loved reading and secretly (well, maybe not so secretly anymore) always wanted to write a book. Your success has inspired me and I hope to one day turn the book writing itself in my head into one I can put on a shelf. Furthermore, seeing your picture in a recent People magazine made me suddenly feel like I knew someone famous... let's not focus on the fact that we don't actually know one another at all. Just know that you've inspired me to pursue one of my dreams :)
Thanks again Tonya for the wonderful compliment and, had you not already posted this to your blog, you most definitely would have made this list!
Happy blogging everyone!
Friday, July 6, 2012
Climbing mountains
... well, attempting to run them anyway... Of course, looking back on it now, maybe this wasn't such a good idea... but I'll get back to that later.
Our family recently took a trip to Deep Creek Lake in Maryland. My husband and I had been there for a few long weekend trips in the past, but this visit was for 9 days and, with a toddler in tow, it made for an entirely different kind of vacation. Deep Creek is wonderfully relaxing... a great place to spend a day out on a boat, soaking up some sun and having a few adult beverages. With a toddler, the game plan changes and it becomes decidedly less 'relaxing'. Nevertheless, we had an amazing time with both family and friends, managed to work on our barbaric tans and still squeezed in a few adult beverages... of course, I use the term 'a few' loosely :)
Anyway, I was determined to get in a couple of runs during this vacation, even though I still haven't completely bounced back from this hip injury I'm battling. My brother-in-law also happens to be getting back on track with running, so we thought it would be a good idea to get out there together. The house where we stayed is located on a mountain and had a great 1.3 mile loop. Of course, driving it was a heck of a lot easier than actually running it. Below is a snapshot from Google Earth. I don't believe this picture does it any justice, but it's the best I could do... the green square is where we started, then followed the yellow lines. The red dots mark the half mile uphill climb...
Early in the week, Michael and I headed out to tackle the route. Try as we might, we just couldn't make it up the hill without stopping to walk. So, midweek we tried it again. This time I had the bright idea to run it the opposite direction thinking that breaking the uphill climb into 2 parts would make it easier with a nice downhill jog in the middle. This was just plain silly... starting the run with the steep climb with no real warm up was just insane and, as it turns out, impossible for us. We just couldn't get to the top without walking.
Fortunately for me, I had one more opportunity to tackle it... Michael had to leave a few days before I did, so I set out at the end of the week to give it one more shot. I opted for the original route of downhill first, uphill in the middle and ending on the last downhill section. I'm not going to lie, it was nearly impossible. My lungs were burning (possibly because the temps were already in the 80s) and every body part ached. But I knew if I didn't make it this time, I wouldn't have the opportunity to try again. So I somehow managed to stick it out and make it all the way around without stopping. Yay me... check it off the list... and probably never do it again... :)
All of that being said, a conversation a few days later with a couple of avid runners (one of which I believe has more than 8 marathons under her belt) led me to believe that this might not have been the best idea. Sure, they were impressed I'd made it without stopping (they'd actually been to this location before and knew the route I was talking about), but the ensuing conversation has led me to believe that it's quite possible that what I'm dealing with isn't a muscle or joint issue at all, but a stress fracture instead. Not sure why I hadn't considered this option earlier, but everything I'm now reading leads me to believe that this is the case. Not yay me...
So, now, of course, I should get myself an appointment with a doctor, get some x-rays and see what I'm dealing with. Yeah... that's what I'll do... well, at least that's what I'll tell everyone I'm going to do... then I'll put it off for as long as humanly possible while I tell myself that, with a little more time, it should go away on its own... because that's what WebMD tells me... 6 to 8 weeks off and it should correct itself. And since everything you read online is accurate, I'll just go ahead and pretend I know what the hell I'm talking about. (Don't worry, I'm actually rolling my own eyes at my asinine way of thinking... you're not the only one that thinks I'm a little crazy).
Our family recently took a trip to Deep Creek Lake in Maryland. My husband and I had been there for a few long weekend trips in the past, but this visit was for 9 days and, with a toddler in tow, it made for an entirely different kind of vacation. Deep Creek is wonderfully relaxing... a great place to spend a day out on a boat, soaking up some sun and having a few adult beverages. With a toddler, the game plan changes and it becomes decidedly less 'relaxing'. Nevertheless, we had an amazing time with both family and friends, managed to work on our barbaric tans and still squeezed in a few adult beverages... of course, I use the term 'a few' loosely :)
Anyway, I was determined to get in a couple of runs during this vacation, even though I still haven't completely bounced back from this hip injury I'm battling. My brother-in-law also happens to be getting back on track with running, so we thought it would be a good idea to get out there together. The house where we stayed is located on a mountain and had a great 1.3 mile loop. Of course, driving it was a heck of a lot easier than actually running it. Below is a snapshot from Google Earth. I don't believe this picture does it any justice, but it's the best I could do... the green square is where we started, then followed the yellow lines. The red dots mark the half mile uphill climb...
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| Mountainview Drive, Deep Creek Lake, MD |
Fortunately for me, I had one more opportunity to tackle it... Michael had to leave a few days before I did, so I set out at the end of the week to give it one more shot. I opted for the original route of downhill first, uphill in the middle and ending on the last downhill section. I'm not going to lie, it was nearly impossible. My lungs were burning (possibly because the temps were already in the 80s) and every body part ached. But I knew if I didn't make it this time, I wouldn't have the opportunity to try again. So I somehow managed to stick it out and make it all the way around without stopping. Yay me... check it off the list... and probably never do it again... :)
All of that being said, a conversation a few days later with a couple of avid runners (one of which I believe has more than 8 marathons under her belt) led me to believe that this might not have been the best idea. Sure, they were impressed I'd made it without stopping (they'd actually been to this location before and knew the route I was talking about), but the ensuing conversation has led me to believe that it's quite possible that what I'm dealing with isn't a muscle or joint issue at all, but a stress fracture instead. Not sure why I hadn't considered this option earlier, but everything I'm now reading leads me to believe that this is the case. Not yay me...
So, now, of course, I should get myself an appointment with a doctor, get some x-rays and see what I'm dealing with. Yeah... that's what I'll do... well, at least that's what I'll tell everyone I'm going to do... then I'll put it off for as long as humanly possible while I tell myself that, with a little more time, it should go away on its own... because that's what WebMD tells me... 6 to 8 weeks off and it should correct itself. And since everything you read online is accurate, I'll just go ahead and pretend I know what the hell I'm talking about. (Don't worry, I'm actually rolling my own eyes at my asinine way of thinking... you're not the only one that thinks I'm a little crazy).
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Back at it... sort of...
So, almost a full month after the Cleveland Marathon, I've finally gotten back to running. The hip's still not feeling quite right and, against the advice of many people (all of whom I acknowledge are more than likely correct), I am still refusing to see a doctor. Instead, I'll pretend that my high school diploma is enough to declare myself Dr. Mathews and determine that, after a month of rest, what my body really needs is to be pushed harder. And, yes, now that I've written it down, I fully acknowledge how ridiculous that sounds. Nevertheless, it's what I did...
Between the 90 degree heat and my fear of getting too far away from home and realizing what a bad idea this could turn out to be, I opted for a treadmill run at the Y. The thought process behind this madness was the fact that, without a doubt, I had some kind of injury that rest was not fixing, and my silly little brain has decided that, at this point, my lack of activity is what's keeping me from recovering fully. It's time to get some exercise and build up the strength that a month off has certainly taken away from me.
My goal was 3 miles with no consideration for my time. I started with a slow walk and worked my way up to good run, ending my workout somewhere around 6.5 mph. As much as I wanted to pick up where I'd left off, I decided that I would only pick up my pace if and when my body was ready for it and that I would slow back down if I felt uncomfortable for more than a few minutes. Fortunately, every time I sped up and the discomfort came back, it was only about a minute before it subsided and I enjoyed several minutes of comfort before picking up my speed again. My 3 mile run took me 30:30 to complete and, as much as I look forward to improving upon that time, I find I'm not at all disappointed... just relieved to finally be back on track... and, yes, pun intended :)
I ended my workout with 20 minutes of quality ice pack time, followed shortly thereafter with a hot shower and started my afternoon with a massage... Yes, it was a pretty perfect day. And, the best news of all, at day's end I feel no more discomfort than I'd been feeling the last few weeks. Of course, it's also not back to normal yet, but at least I can feel confident that I'm headed in the right direction. It's time to make my workout a regular part of my routine again... oh, how I've missed my running shoes... I'd forgotten what a great stress reliever running could be!
Between the 90 degree heat and my fear of getting too far away from home and realizing what a bad idea this could turn out to be, I opted for a treadmill run at the Y. The thought process behind this madness was the fact that, without a doubt, I had some kind of injury that rest was not fixing, and my silly little brain has decided that, at this point, my lack of activity is what's keeping me from recovering fully. It's time to get some exercise and build up the strength that a month off has certainly taken away from me.
My goal was 3 miles with no consideration for my time. I started with a slow walk and worked my way up to good run, ending my workout somewhere around 6.5 mph. As much as I wanted to pick up where I'd left off, I decided that I would only pick up my pace if and when my body was ready for it and that I would slow back down if I felt uncomfortable for more than a few minutes. Fortunately, every time I sped up and the discomfort came back, it was only about a minute before it subsided and I enjoyed several minutes of comfort before picking up my speed again. My 3 mile run took me 30:30 to complete and, as much as I look forward to improving upon that time, I find I'm not at all disappointed... just relieved to finally be back on track... and, yes, pun intended :)
I ended my workout with 20 minutes of quality ice pack time, followed shortly thereafter with a hot shower and started my afternoon with a massage... Yes, it was a pretty perfect day. And, the best news of all, at day's end I feel no more discomfort than I'd been feeling the last few weeks. Of course, it's also not back to normal yet, but at least I can feel confident that I'm headed in the right direction. It's time to make my workout a regular part of my routine again... oh, how I've missed my running shoes... I'd forgotten what a great stress reliever running could be!
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Now what?!?
A full 11 days after completing the Cleveland Marathon, I finally feel like my body is starting to piece itself back together. Most of my body seemed to recover fairly quickly, but a problem with my right hip has persistently irritated me and, after walking with a limp for the last week and a half, I'm finding it difficult to walk like a normal human being again. I constantly have to remind myself that the pain is subsiding and it's time to stop pretending I'm some kind of gangster... which is simply not cute in high heels.
So, here I am... trying to figure out what in the world to do next. After promising all kinds of bigger and better things to come, I figure it's about time to start sorting out what the heck that might be. So I started to think about making an official list... something to post right here for all the world (or at least for the 6 people that actually follow this blog) to see. But the fact remains that I'm simply afraid to write it down where others can see it, and keep track of it, and know whether I'm truly following through on all of this crap or if I'm just really good at talking about it. Then again, I should probably be concerned about anyone that's keeping track of me that closely. *To any potential stalkers out there, please know that I reserve the right, at any time, to make revisions, additions and deletions to this list (which, in turn, gives me an out when it comes to actually following through on any of this stuff... too chicken? just delete it! I didn't really want to [fill in bucket list item here] in the first place).*
... I digress...
While the accomplishment of one goal has certainly encouraged the setting of new ones, I realize that the newness of it is beginning to wear off. I'm still as proud as I ever was, but as the excitement of it all dies down, I fear I might lose my nerve... so I'm actually making a list... I'm writing it down... Here goes nothing...
Run a marathon
My husband and I are big fans of adding completed items to a list so that, at first glance, it appears we're way ahead of the game. However, in this particular situation, I feel no guilt over including an already accomplished goal... it is, after all, the reason I'm here in the first place. I consider it a huge step in the right direction that I haven't added things like "clean the spare room" or "buy new bedroom curtains"... both items I could immediately cross off as completed. I figure those don't exactly qualify as bucket list items. I'll make an effort to keep my 'honey do' list separate.
So, here I am... trying to figure out what in the world to do next. After promising all kinds of bigger and better things to come, I figure it's about time to start sorting out what the heck that might be. So I started to think about making an official list... something to post right here for all the world (or at least for the 6 people that actually follow this blog) to see. But the fact remains that I'm simply afraid to write it down where others can see it, and keep track of it, and know whether I'm truly following through on all of this crap or if I'm just really good at talking about it. Then again, I should probably be concerned about anyone that's keeping track of me that closely. *To any potential stalkers out there, please know that I reserve the right, at any time, to make revisions, additions and deletions to this list (which, in turn, gives me an out when it comes to actually following through on any of this stuff... too chicken? just delete it! I didn't really want to [fill in bucket list item here] in the first place).*
... I digress...
While the accomplishment of one goal has certainly encouraged the setting of new ones, I realize that the newness of it is beginning to wear off. I'm still as proud as I ever was, but as the excitement of it all dies down, I fear I might lose my nerve... so I'm actually making a list... I'm writing it down... Here goes nothing...
Get more involved with a charity
Learn kickboxing
Write a book
Run my own business
Travel to Europe
Skydive
Start a vegetable garden
Get out of debt
Take a cooking class
Take dance lessons
My husband and I are big fans of adding completed items to a list so that, at first glance, it appears we're way ahead of the game. However, in this particular situation, I feel no guilt over including an already accomplished goal... it is, after all, the reason I'm here in the first place. I consider it a huge step in the right direction that I haven't added things like "clean the spare room" or "buy new bedroom curtains"... both items I could immediately cross off as completed. I figure those don't exactly qualify as bucket list items. I'll make an effort to keep my 'honey do' list separate.
So there you have it... just a few things I have planned for my future. And if all of that doesn't sound exciting enough for you, please keep in mind that it is my intention to make far more additions than deletions. Someday this will be a list of all of the things I've accomplished... my greatest memories and most wonderful stories to share... and I want that list to be a heck of a lot longer than this one :)
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
I DID IT!
While I would have liked to post sooner about my marathon run, I realized I needed a few days to properly reflect on my experience (at least something beyond: "I'll never do that again")... plus it took a full 48 hours of recovery time for me to be willing to sit in this wooden desk chair long enough to type anything of substance.
First and foremost, I still stand by my initial thought... I have no intention of ever running another marathon. Of course, I can't really say that with absolute certainty... maybe someday I'll decide that I want to improve upon my time, try to qualify for Boston or even take a different approach to the whole thing (it could be fun to run the whole marathon with the sole purpose of taking photos from the perspective of the runner... being surrounded by 20,000+ people, the spectators, the signs, the amazing scenery...) But, at this point, if I were the betting type, I would put my money on never repeating this kind of thing again.
But before anyone makes any assumptions about why I don't plan to run another marathon, it's important to know why I wanted to run one in the first place. This whole thing came about because I wanted to be a better person... a better wife, mother, friend, employee... I found my life had little direction. I had no goals, no hobbies, and nothing that excited me. Don't get me wrong... I was enjoying my life immensely. I have a wonderful family, a great job and amazing friends... but I wasn't really doing anything. I was simply watching life go by and enjoying the scenery. I realized that if I was going to truly live this one life I'd been given, I was going to have to do more than enjoy the ride... I needed to be the one driving the train.
So, I started by reading. That part was easy - it was something I already loved to do. But rather than reading about the fictional lives of fictional people, I decided to try to learn more about real things and actual people... and maybe learn something new about myself in the process. I looked for topics I didn't know much about and found that, while I may not have any interest in politics or sports, I can still enjoy the process of learning something new about them.
It was actually a sports-related book that got me thinking about my own goals and dreams. My husband had recommended I read Winning Every Day by Lou Holtz. While the author is a football coach and made several references to games and athletes throughout his career, I still found the book to be incredibly inspiring. At Coach Holtz's urging, I went about making my own bucket list. In creating that list, I realized I had quite a few things that I wanted to do... and no discernible reason not to get started. Number one on my list was to run a marathon... so after 12 years of laziness, it was time to get off the couch and start running again...
This process was a long one and started last summer with just a few miles a week. I knew it was going to take a lot of work and determination, but I also knew that no one was going to achieve this goal for me. For the first time in a very long time I had something I was going to work for and I couldn't wait to check my first major goal off my list.
So, now, here I am, having completed a full marathon, reflecting on all of that work and the experience I've had and I'm struck by so many different things. First, it was one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life. It required a lot of time in the months leading up to the race and a whole lot of determination to stick with it. There were injuries and frustrations along the way. And race day was grueling... with temps in the 80s and a few difficult hills along the course, I had a rough go of it. The first half actually seemed fairly easy and I definitely overdid it when it came to my pace. I struggled with the idea of slowing down when I was feeling that strong. This, of course, was silly... I had a long way to go and definitely should have gone slower. Unfortunately, I couldn't keep that pace for the second half. That being said, I have no regrets about how I ran it. Sure, I could have made better decisions along the way, but this was a learning experience for me. Other first time marathoners view it as a learning experience for future races... I simply think of it as a learning experience for future life experiences. It was difficult... and I still managed to make it. When all was said and done, I still crossed the finish line. Bucket list item #1: Run a marathon... Check! And putting that pink 26.2 sticker on my car was most definitely a proud moment and worth every ounce of energy that went into earning it.
And now for the contradictory part... this was also one of the easiest things I've ever done. Not physically, by any means... but mentally. Even at the most difficult points of the race, it never crossed my mind to quit. For the first time in my life I set my mind to something, worked hard for it and accomplished a goal... a big one. At the age of 31, I think I've finally got it figured out... not the meaning of life or anything quite so grandiose... but the simple concept of wanting something, working hard for it and getting it. This was a wonderful goal for me and I really did enjoy every step of the process when it came to achieving it... even the really hard parts. So, I have to wonder... what else can I do? What else can I achieve during this life? What can I set my mind to next? The fun part at this point is that I have no idea... but I can't wait to figure it out.
So, no... I do not plan to run another marathon. But I do plan to set a new goal... something fun, something big and something I can enjoy just as much as I enjoyed this. I learned so much about myself on Sunday and couldn't be more proud of my accomplishment. And I look forward to discovering what I accomplish next.
First and foremost, I still stand by my initial thought... I have no intention of ever running another marathon. Of course, I can't really say that with absolute certainty... maybe someday I'll decide that I want to improve upon my time, try to qualify for Boston or even take a different approach to the whole thing (it could be fun to run the whole marathon with the sole purpose of taking photos from the perspective of the runner... being surrounded by 20,000+ people, the spectators, the signs, the amazing scenery...) But, at this point, if I were the betting type, I would put my money on never repeating this kind of thing again.
But before anyone makes any assumptions about why I don't plan to run another marathon, it's important to know why I wanted to run one in the first place. This whole thing came about because I wanted to be a better person... a better wife, mother, friend, employee... I found my life had little direction. I had no goals, no hobbies, and nothing that excited me. Don't get me wrong... I was enjoying my life immensely. I have a wonderful family, a great job and amazing friends... but I wasn't really doing anything. I was simply watching life go by and enjoying the scenery. I realized that if I was going to truly live this one life I'd been given, I was going to have to do more than enjoy the ride... I needed to be the one driving the train.
So, I started by reading. That part was easy - it was something I already loved to do. But rather than reading about the fictional lives of fictional people, I decided to try to learn more about real things and actual people... and maybe learn something new about myself in the process. I looked for topics I didn't know much about and found that, while I may not have any interest in politics or sports, I can still enjoy the process of learning something new about them.
It was actually a sports-related book that got me thinking about my own goals and dreams. My husband had recommended I read Winning Every Day by Lou Holtz. While the author is a football coach and made several references to games and athletes throughout his career, I still found the book to be incredibly inspiring. At Coach Holtz's urging, I went about making my own bucket list. In creating that list, I realized I had quite a few things that I wanted to do... and no discernible reason not to get started. Number one on my list was to run a marathon... so after 12 years of laziness, it was time to get off the couch and start running again...
This process was a long one and started last summer with just a few miles a week. I knew it was going to take a lot of work and determination, but I also knew that no one was going to achieve this goal for me. For the first time in a very long time I had something I was going to work for and I couldn't wait to check my first major goal off my list.
So, now, here I am, having completed a full marathon, reflecting on all of that work and the experience I've had and I'm struck by so many different things. First, it was one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life. It required a lot of time in the months leading up to the race and a whole lot of determination to stick with it. There were injuries and frustrations along the way. And race day was grueling... with temps in the 80s and a few difficult hills along the course, I had a rough go of it. The first half actually seemed fairly easy and I definitely overdid it when it came to my pace. I struggled with the idea of slowing down when I was feeling that strong. This, of course, was silly... I had a long way to go and definitely should have gone slower. Unfortunately, I couldn't keep that pace for the second half. That being said, I have no regrets about how I ran it. Sure, I could have made better decisions along the way, but this was a learning experience for me. Other first time marathoners view it as a learning experience for future races... I simply think of it as a learning experience for future life experiences. It was difficult... and I still managed to make it. When all was said and done, I still crossed the finish line. Bucket list item #1: Run a marathon... Check! And putting that pink 26.2 sticker on my car was most definitely a proud moment and worth every ounce of energy that went into earning it.
 |
| Officially a marathoner!!! |
And now for the contradictory part... this was also one of the easiest things I've ever done. Not physically, by any means... but mentally. Even at the most difficult points of the race, it never crossed my mind to quit. For the first time in my life I set my mind to something, worked hard for it and accomplished a goal... a big one. At the age of 31, I think I've finally got it figured out... not the meaning of life or anything quite so grandiose... but the simple concept of wanting something, working hard for it and getting it. This was a wonderful goal for me and I really did enjoy every step of the process when it came to achieving it... even the really hard parts. So, I have to wonder... what else can I do? What else can I achieve during this life? What can I set my mind to next? The fun part at this point is that I have no idea... but I can't wait to figure it out.
So, no... I do not plan to run another marathon. But I do plan to set a new goal... something fun, something big and something I can enjoy just as much as I enjoyed this. I learned so much about myself on Sunday and couldn't be more proud of my accomplishment. And I look forward to discovering what I accomplish next.
So, here's the breakdown of the official results from the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon:
Erin Mathews (bib #695)
Avon, OH, USA
Age: 31 Gender: F
Distance
|
MAR
|
Clock Time
|
04:18:38
|
Chip Time
|
04:15:19*
|
Overall Place
|
953 / 14757
|
Gender Place
|
255 / 8311
|
Division Place
|
63 / 1498
|
Pace
|
0:09:44.
|
Split10K
|
00:53:06
|
Half
|
01:52:37
|
Split31K
|
02:53:59
|
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Day 138 (5/17): 3 miles / 25:18
So it's my last training run before the marathon and it felt better than I'd expected. I've really been showing my hamstrings a lot of love this week and it's clearly paid off. Between all of the stretching and my new favorite product (Biofreeze is pretty awesome stuff), I feel like I'm almost back to normal. I don't doubt my leg will bother me at some point during the marathon, but at least it'll feel good at the starting line... and hopefully for at least a few miles after that :)
As far as my time is concerned (an 8:26 pace), I was shooting for faster than marathon pace... again, I'm just trying to trick my body into thinking my pace for the marathon is easy :) Hopefully this tactic pays off... but I'm fairly certain nothing about the marathon will be 'easy'
That being said, I can't freakin' wait until Sunday!
Whenever I get nervous about some part of the race, I try to think of something equally as exciting... i.e. "Holy crap, I'm going to be crammed into the starting area with a crowd of 14,000 people"... which turns into... "Holy crap, I'm going to be surrounded at the starting line by 14,000 people who I get to share this amazing experience with" or "OMG, what was I thinking? I can't believe I'm going to run 26.2 miles!"... which becomes... "How awesome am I? I'm about to run 26.2 miles!" It's all a matter of perspective.
And whenever I think about the toll this whole thing will take on my body... the pain I know I will have to endure during some part (or all) of the race... and the exhaustion that is sure to follow its conclusion... I try to remind myself that you never know what you're capable of until you push yourself to your limit. And I intend to do just that on Sunday. I'm treating this as a once in a lifetime opportunity and I fully intend to give it all I've got.
"You have exactly one life in which to do everything you'll ever do. Act accordingly." - Colin Wright
I don't have a clue who this Colin Wright fellow is, but I like him :)
As far as my time is concerned (an 8:26 pace), I was shooting for faster than marathon pace... again, I'm just trying to trick my body into thinking my pace for the marathon is easy :) Hopefully this tactic pays off... but I'm fairly certain nothing about the marathon will be 'easy'
That being said, I can't freakin' wait until Sunday!
Whenever I get nervous about some part of the race, I try to think of something equally as exciting... i.e. "Holy crap, I'm going to be crammed into the starting area with a crowd of 14,000 people"... which turns into... "Holy crap, I'm going to be surrounded at the starting line by 14,000 people who I get to share this amazing experience with" or "OMG, what was I thinking? I can't believe I'm going to run 26.2 miles!"... which becomes... "How awesome am I? I'm about to run 26.2 miles!" It's all a matter of perspective.
And whenever I think about the toll this whole thing will take on my body... the pain I know I will have to endure during some part (or all) of the race... and the exhaustion that is sure to follow its conclusion... I try to remind myself that you never know what you're capable of until you push yourself to your limit. And I intend to do just that on Sunday. I'm treating this as a once in a lifetime opportunity and I fully intend to give it all I've got.
"You have exactly one life in which to do everything you'll ever do. Act accordingly." - Colin Wright
I don't have a clue who this Colin Wright fellow is, but I like him :)
Day 137 (5/16): 1 mile / 9:01
The perfect 'take it easy' day...
All I wanted to do was get in a quick run to warm up the muscles so I could spend some more time stretching the hamstring. And it worked out perfectly. I'm feeling better than I have in weeks and have a good feeling about the progress I'll see over the next few days. I can't wait for Sunday!!!
Oh, and it was nice to be done running in less than 10 minutes... I'd gotten used to having to set aside a few hours for my workout... it was a nice change of pace :)
All I wanted to do was get in a quick run to warm up the muscles so I could spend some more time stretching the hamstring. And it worked out perfectly. I'm feeling better than I have in weeks and have a good feeling about the progress I'll see over the next few days. I can't wait for Sunday!!!
Oh, and it was nice to be done running in less than 10 minutes... I'd gotten used to having to set aside a few hours for my workout... it was a nice change of pace :)
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Day 136 (5/14): 5 miles / 41:01
After too many days of rest and not enough results, I decided today was the day to find out if pushing through the pain was the way to go. Regardless of what happens, I am definitely running the marathon on Sunday, but at this point I need to know what I'm up against.
Even though my longest scheduled run this week is 4 miles, I decided that I missed enough runs in the last few weeks to justify a slightly longer distance today. I don't want to overdo it, but I wanted to get in the longest run possible and didn't want to do it too close to race day. Plus, I really wanted to get in one more run at faster than marathon pace... trying to trick myself into believing that anything slower will be easy :)
Before heading out for my run, I decided I would try a few things to see if anything might help alleviate the discomfort in my leg. I took a few ibuprofen, covered my ailing area in Biofreeze gel (similar to Icy Hot, but it stays cool), got in a really good stretch and even convinced my husband to massage my leg to try to work out some of the kinks (massaging your own leg is complicated and not exactly thorough). While I'm not sure which ones worked best, I'm thinking I may repeat all of them on race day because I left the house feeling better than I had in some time... and I couldn't wait to see how running felt.
Unfortunately there are still a few issues to deal with... there's definitely some tightness and I'm still a little sore... but all in all, I felt really good. And while I didn't need to push myself quite as hard as I did, I knew in the back of my mind that, if it felt difficult but wasn't particularly fast, I would be concerned about how to pace myself on Sunday. I was pleasantly surprised that my pace ended up at 8:12... because I know that's far faster than I intend to run on Sunday and I want Sunday's pace to feel comfortable. And I'm feeling pretty good about my chances.
For now, it's time for ice, heat, stretching and more Biofreeze before bed... and maybe a bowl of ice cream, too! :)
Even though my longest scheduled run this week is 4 miles, I decided that I missed enough runs in the last few weeks to justify a slightly longer distance today. I don't want to overdo it, but I wanted to get in the longest run possible and didn't want to do it too close to race day. Plus, I really wanted to get in one more run at faster than marathon pace... trying to trick myself into believing that anything slower will be easy :)
Before heading out for my run, I decided I would try a few things to see if anything might help alleviate the discomfort in my leg. I took a few ibuprofen, covered my ailing area in Biofreeze gel (similar to Icy Hot, but it stays cool), got in a really good stretch and even convinced my husband to massage my leg to try to work out some of the kinks (massaging your own leg is complicated and not exactly thorough). While I'm not sure which ones worked best, I'm thinking I may repeat all of them on race day because I left the house feeling better than I had in some time... and I couldn't wait to see how running felt.
Unfortunately there are still a few issues to deal with... there's definitely some tightness and I'm still a little sore... but all in all, I felt really good. And while I didn't need to push myself quite as hard as I did, I knew in the back of my mind that, if it felt difficult but wasn't particularly fast, I would be concerned about how to pace myself on Sunday. I was pleasantly surprised that my pace ended up at 8:12... because I know that's far faster than I intend to run on Sunday and I want Sunday's pace to feel comfortable. And I'm feeling pretty good about my chances.
For now, it's time for ice, heat, stretching and more Biofreeze before bed... and maybe a bowl of ice cream, too! :)
Monday, May 14, 2012
the random thoughts of a marathoner-in-training
Only 6 days until the marathon...
I suddenly can't sleep (not that my son is helping much in that department). 3:30 a.m. has turned into a quite time of reflection, followed at 4:00 a.m. by an early morning wake up call from the baby monitor... I can live with the insomnia, but prefer to pass on the rest.
No trouble eating though... In fact, I'm kind of pretending that I need to pack on a few extra pounds before the big day so as not to feel quite so guilty about the calories I'm consuming... I guess I'm officially a nervous eater.
I've gone from counting weeks to counting days... this fact scares the crap out of me!
Am I at all prepared for this?!? How was I so confident until just now? Where did that confidence go? Did it simply walk away along with my ability to sleep? I'm missing them both desperately.
Did I push myself too hard? My leg seems to think so. Then again, maybe I'm just being a pansy ass. How can I know for sure?
Why am I already concerned about how I'll feel after crossing the finish line? I haven't even gotten to the starting line yet! The problem is that I've read and heard stories about people suffering some sort of depression after a big race... it's the conclusion to all of that hard work and training with nothing big planned to follow it up with. I find myself wanting a new project to immediately work on afterward so that I can avoid such nonsense... I'd like to believe I could just enjoy the downtime... this insanity is stressing me out.
I suddenly have a craving for chocolate...
Deep breaths, Erin... out with the bad, in with the good...
Okay, here goes nothing... I'm running this marathon because it's something I've always wanted to do. Sometimes I forgot what my goals were... I got lazy and stopped caring about important things. Then all of those important things came back to me. It was a slow process (much like training), but one that was worth every step of the way. I've learned all kinds of wonderful things about myself... including the fact that I'm a bad ass who can run 20 miles. I've learned how important my family is... both the one I was born into and the one I've chosen. My husband and my son... my biggest fans... they're more than I could ever have dreamed of. My abilities are many, my downfalls few. Sure, I have flaws, but those who love me don't give a damn about any of them... so neither do I. I've learned that I'm strong and capable of far more than I ever thought possible. I'm running this marathon for one simple reason... because I can. This is something I know. The scary part is that it's time to prove it...
but I'm ready...
I suddenly can't sleep (not that my son is helping much in that department). 3:30 a.m. has turned into a quite time of reflection, followed at 4:00 a.m. by an early morning wake up call from the baby monitor... I can live with the insomnia, but prefer to pass on the rest.
No trouble eating though... In fact, I'm kind of pretending that I need to pack on a few extra pounds before the big day so as not to feel quite so guilty about the calories I'm consuming... I guess I'm officially a nervous eater.
I've gone from counting weeks to counting days... this fact scares the crap out of me!
Am I at all prepared for this?!? How was I so confident until just now? Where did that confidence go? Did it simply walk away along with my ability to sleep? I'm missing them both desperately.
Did I push myself too hard? My leg seems to think so. Then again, maybe I'm just being a pansy ass. How can I know for sure?
Why am I already concerned about how I'll feel after crossing the finish line? I haven't even gotten to the starting line yet! The problem is that I've read and heard stories about people suffering some sort of depression after a big race... it's the conclusion to all of that hard work and training with nothing big planned to follow it up with. I find myself wanting a new project to immediately work on afterward so that I can avoid such nonsense... I'd like to believe I could just enjoy the downtime... this insanity is stressing me out.
I suddenly have a craving for chocolate...
Deep breaths, Erin... out with the bad, in with the good...
Okay, here goes nothing... I'm running this marathon because it's something I've always wanted to do. Sometimes I forgot what my goals were... I got lazy and stopped caring about important things. Then all of those important things came back to me. It was a slow process (much like training), but one that was worth every step of the way. I've learned all kinds of wonderful things about myself... including the fact that I'm a bad ass who can run 20 miles. I've learned how important my family is... both the one I was born into and the one I've chosen. My husband and my son... my biggest fans... they're more than I could ever have dreamed of. My abilities are many, my downfalls few. Sure, I have flaws, but those who love me don't give a damn about any of them... so neither do I. I've learned that I'm strong and capable of far more than I ever thought possible. I'm running this marathon for one simple reason... because I can. This is something I know. The scary part is that it's time to prove it...
but I'm ready...
Day 135 (5/10): ??? / 15:32
I'm not sure how I feel about this run... I'm glad I got it in and didn't take the entire week off... then again, I didn't feel great (thus the reason it was so short), which was a little discouraging. With a week of vacation in Orlando, we've spent a ton of time walking, which I initially thought would be good for me. But, with the persistent discomfort in my leg, I'm wondering if truly taking some time off would have been better. Either way, I'm running out of recovery days quickly and desperately want to feel good on marathon day. Of course, it's a little too late for second guessing my decisions (not to mention the fact that I wouldn't have skipped out on any part of the amazing time I've had with my family in Walt Disney World). The truth is, I don't need to feel great for the marathon... I'll settle for feeling good :) And with only 10 days to go, I'm still keeping my fingers crossed for that possibility. If all else fails, I'll settle for mediocre... because I'm running this marathon come hell or high water...
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