Blogging on a Runner’s High

March 11, 2013July 25, 2014 / jane in training / 4 Comments

Victory!!

Today was the first day I actually felt good while running. I mean really good. My body didn’t argue with me, the weather was beautiful, my mind strong. And I felt happy.

Not every day is or will be like this, but I realized that it’s important to know this feeling, to know what it is that makes you feel good so that you can more easily recognize what feels off or wrong.

On a different note, today I learned that I can look at visitor stats for my blog. Granted, not many people go to my blog, but I was shocked to see that a few people outside of the U.S. have visited. So I have to give a shout out to:

United Kingdom
Australia
Canada
Belgium
Poland
Kenya

Of course, this doesn’t mean anyone actually read anything I wrote. They could have accidentally gone to a post, thought “What the #!%*?” and immediately clicked their heels and disappeared. But that’s okay. I mean, someone in Kenya looked at my blog. For real? Thank you, Kenya!! I love you!! In fact, I love all of you!!

I think I’m still on my runner’s high…

The Properties of Alchemy (and Meat)

February 19, 2013 / jane in training / 8 Comments

**Disclaimer: This is not a serious overview of alchemy, or meat for that matter. If you’re a serious sort, I urge you to find other, more weighty info on Wikipedia (which will kindly lead you to scholarly sources) or look up Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. You won’t find anything intellectual here. Okay, I feel better now.

From what I understand, alchemy is the mystical process of turning common metals into gold. There are a whole bunch of philosophical, scientific and psychological ideas regarding this process, but for me, it’s like this:

Running and the other types of exercise I’ve been doing are causing some sort of alchemical process to take place in my body. My calves, which I had hoped beyond all reason would get smaller, are changing into chicken drumsticks. My badonkadonk is like shawarma, originally stacked, but now portions are being shaved off. And my thighs? They are meat-filled burritos, flexing their power, when before, they were flabby and quietly respectful. They kind of have an attitude now.

[I’m sorry if I ruined anyone’s appetite. And, uh, I hope there aren’t any cannibals reading this. Just to be clear, I’m speaking figuratively. Please don’t picture me in your head right now.]

I always knew that I had to make friends with my body as part of the whole process of accepting myself. I used to take the easy route, wearing baggy overalls that covered – well, covered everything in an extremely generous way. But one day I saw a photo of myself in said overalls, and I cringed. I was shapeless. I might as well have worn a cape three sizes too big. The poodle perm didn’t help, either.

Now? No more perm. No more hiding in my clothes. Now I just need mental alchemy to help me see gold in the common form that is me.

Where do you need alchemy?

Shall We Dance?

February 3, 2013 / jane in training / 4 Comments

I’m not sure what I was thinking. That’s just it. I wasn’t thinking.

After all, I’m still trying to understand the messages that my body sends me (see last entry). Sometimes two halves don’t make up a whole, and sometimes the result isn’t as funny as the movie promises:

The local dance studio had advertised “Disco Night!” which included a lesson in the Hustle and then a dance party to follow. I remembered how much fun it was to do the Hustle, and consequently, I thought it would be really fun to just let loose and dance afterwards.

What I didn’t expect was a formal lesson by award-winning ballroom dancers and as we learned each step, we would be switching partners. I went by myself in an effort to “get myself out there” and found out, hey – this is what speed dating must be like! Except, it turns out, this would be more humiliating. On a positive note, I was having fun learning the first few set of steps before things got complicated with full and half turns. On a not so positive note, if my guy also didn’t know how to dance and one of us missed a step, I got thrown off the ship and I took my partner with me. If I tried to laugh it off and the guy didn’t laugh at all, I felt terrible. Being responsible for my own demise was no big deal. But if I ruined it for someone else…

When the lesson was finished, the lights went out and the disco ball came down. I thought, Let’s Dance!!! Where’s Ren McCormack??!! But people partnered up to elegantly chachacha and hustle and do whatever choreographed step they were doing. Oh.

I watched the other single women being asked to dance and after fidgeting on the sidelines a bit, I left. I felt…awkward. I blame myself – I could have laughed it all off and not cared what anyone thought. The point was to have fun, and my feelings of embarrassment kept me from truly having fun.

I guess the point of trying something new is that at least you learn what you like and don’t like. After all, I don’t get the least bit embarrassed when I dance at weddings or other events where you can just let go and dance the way you want to. In fact, I’m positive that I embarrass other people. Maybe structured dance just isn’t my thing.

I was telling my mom about the experience and she said (translation provided in English), “When you were young, maybe 6 or 7 years old, you would put a record on and dance, dance, dance…dance, dance, dance…shake your booty, shake your booty…” (Sorry, I made up that last part. Couldn’t resist.) She said that I would dance and dance and laugh and laugh…

That’s how a kid dances, right? With complete freedom and joy?

That’s what all of me loves about dancing. There is no argument within because I can let it all go and feel like a kid again.

No, I probably won’t be going back to that dance studio. Not unless they combine speed dating with improvisational dance. Now where to find…

A Day in the Life

January 17, 2013 / jane in training / 3 Comments

It’s my birthday today, and I am super thankful. Instead of writing a novel, I’ll let the photos do most of the talking:

Started out my morning at a local coffee shop to have my power breakfast and do a little job hunting.

Next stop, the beach. I took a moment to admire all the jewelry out there.

More jewels.

I went home, suited up, and went for a run along the beach. See the egret? Cool, huh? BTW, all this running seems to be shrinking my badonkadonk,
but at the same time, it’s making my thighs meatier. What’s up with that? No, I didn’t take a photo of either. That’s sick! Yes, I’m talking to you…you know who you are!!

Next stop, this place called Costco. My mom and I dined on the amuse bouche that they had to offer. It was quite delightful.
Then I contemplated buying these poor, dented containers of Que Bueno. I felt sorry for them.

From amuse bouche to dinner! I know, not the greatest photo, but believe me now and believe me later – it was #*!#%!* delicious.
I had (cover your eyes, veg heads) duck leg and duck ravioli. Sooo good!

Hey, a present from my friends in L.A.!! It was so sweet of them to send me something!

This is only about 1/8 of what was in that box. My friends are special. Oh, so special.
And I miss them very much.

Thoughts on Turkey Day

November 22, 2012July 7, 2013 / jane in training / 3 Comments

Los Angeles vs.:

That’s my finger in the left hand corner, not a demon presence. Thanks for worrying about me.

There’s really no contest. At least, not for me.

Blue (thankfully) sunny skies, the smell of an unpolluted ocean, and clean, fresh air. I stopped during my run this morning to take the photo above. I’ll be moving here in about four weeks, and the visual landscape – a deer was trotting down the road as I made my way downtown – reminded me that I made the right decision.

However, my social circle will be shrinking down to almost nothing, so I’ll have to make some kind of attempt at meeting people so that I don’t become a social misfit. Well, okay…so that I don’t increase my misfitness. Or, I could go back to grunting as a means of communication. Maybe I’ll meet a nice caveboy and live an uncomplicated life with him, not with words, but with a lot of colorful gestures.

My plan is for this move to be my in-between place, to take stock and plan my next step. Think good thoughts for my sanity, as I will be *gulp* temporarily moving back in with my parents.

But, one thing at a time.

I still have to break up with work next week, which, once done, will make my leaving that much more real.