Enough about my stroke….how about I talk about my dog, Annabelle Blanche!

My dog, Annabelle Blanche, is such a joy to me! I got her when I was 23. There was a lot going on in my life. I was in my second year of graduate school, taking 18 hours of classes. I was not only taking courses for Social Work, but also I was doing a second master degree for Public Health.  On Monday and Friday I went to Tuscaloosa, an hour away from Birmingham, to take my classes for Social Work. I had a part time job, waiting tables at a BBQ joint. I also had a very active social life. (Side note: Okay, so I really went out to the bars to drink a lot.)  Having a dog on top of everything else was hard. I even asked the breeder if I could give her back…she said no! I can’t imagine my life without her now.

Annabelle Blanche is a Boston terrier, but she isn’t my first Boston terrier. My family has had various Boston terrier’s my whole life. My first Boston was Brutus. Actually, Brutus was my parent’s dog and he was around before I arrived. One of my first words was “sit” because I thought that was Brutus name. Our next dog was Bandit. Whenever the mail guy put the mail into the slot on the door, Bandit would tear the mail. One of my Father’s contracts for a job had Bandit’s bite marks on it. Next was Blossom, our first girl dog. She had a sire named Bama Braves Bobbin and the two gave birth to Brutus II and Buster. Of course, the two dogs went to people in my family. Later in life, my father had Beatrice. He called her Bea. Now the only other Boston terrier in the family is Babs, my aunt’s dog. She is a lot like Annabelle Blanche, just smaller.

I’ve always had a dog in my life, but Annabelle Blanche is the best dog! She sleeps under the covers, is always ready for you to throw the ball to her, and she likes for me to throw a Frisbee in the park. The best part is that whenever I am on the couch, she will snuggle up next to me, her face against my face. I really do love her. 

 

PS-because my Mama is going to ask: This post took 2 hours. It was an hour and half last night to compose, 15 minutes at speech therapy today, and then 15 minutes to edit based on what I wrote in speech therapy!

 

Honesty

I ran across this on the book of faces…thought it looked like an easy blog post to write!

Directions:
1.  Put iTunes on shuffle  
2.  For each question, press the “next” button to get your answer 
3.  Write down the song name, no matter how silly it sounds 

1.) IF SOMEONE SAYS ‘ARE YOU OKAY,’ YOU SAY: “Sweet Afton” – Nickel Creek
Okay, so this doesn’t make much sense…but it does remind me of my friend Robin, who had a friend that used to call this song something along the lines of “Yo, River, shut up so my girlfriend can sleep”, only Kevin used much more colorful words. This is a family blog, so I shall not elaborate!

2.) HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF? “Hide and Seek” – Imogene Heap
Hmm….most of y’all will recognize this song because the chorus was sampled in Jason Derulo’s song “Watcha Say”.  I hate to get all teen angsty on y’all, but wouldn’t you say that most people play hide and seek when describing themselves? We describe ourselves by putthing out best attritbutes out there and hiding the other things that really make us who we are. If the person asking really cared, they would have to seek out those things that we hide.

 3.) WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?: “Strawberry Fields Forever” – Ben Harper
Ha, I do like the smell of Strawberries. 

4.) HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?: “Alpha Beta Parking Lot” – Cake 
Ha, well I am watching the sun go down right now…letting go of yet another dirty day.

5.) WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE? “Grace is Gone” – Dave Matthews Band
A song about drinking to get over one’s ex…not exactly the best life purpose, but certainly in other times of my life this has felt like my purpose. Thank God those days are long gone…shout out to my 20’s.

6.) WHAT’S YOUR MOTTO?  “Love’s Recovery” – Indigo Girls
Well, this fits. Such a beautful song about viewing “love” from the vantage point of being older. Ever the optismist, I believe in the chance of love’s recovery.

7.) WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU? “Simile Song” – Eddie From Ohio
Guess I’m kinda like all these things, but you don’t know what I am.

 8.) WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU? “Crazy Love” – Van Morrison
Isn’t all family love a touch crazy?

 9.) WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN? “Suicide Blonde” – INXS
Ha….I think about the color of my hair at least once a day….right now I’m trying to decide between Sunflower or Sahara.

10.) WHAT IS 2+2? “Come Pick Me Up” – Ryan Adams
I’m etenrally grateful for my good friend Kate for introducing me to Ryan Adams. 

11.) WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT YOUR BEST FRIEND? “Hand in my Pocket” – Alanis Morissette 
As a 31 year old woman, I no longer have just one BEST friend. I’m grateful to have a whole cadre of delightful people in my life.  That said, this song will always remind me of my dearest friend from middle school, Nikki, who told me in high school that this song described her to a tee. She was right…Nikki loved to flash peace signs in high school…which was totally random in 1996.

12.) WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY? “While my Guitar Gently Weeps” – Phish 

13.) WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP? A lecture from Oregon Health and Sciene Univesity class I took online about Health Information Technology.
Ugh…I spent the last 1.5 years trying to make sense of genetics, newborn screening, and HIT. Thankfully, I’ve been saved by moving to a new postion in education and training. Neither one of these is what I wanted to be when I was a youth. But yeah, I’m doing more than what I ever thought possible for me to do when I was in grad school.

14.) WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE? “Money Honey” – Lady Gaga
“When you give me k-kisses, that’s money, honey”…such a true line when it comes to crushes.

15.) WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING? “Feels like Today” – Rascal Flatts Pretty much any song by Rascal Flatts could be a wedding song…this one is no exception.

16.) WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?  “Sweet Home Alabama” – Lynyrd Skynyrd
Perfect.

17.) WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY?  “Let me go” – Cake
A song about dating…how appropriate!

18.) WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR? “Monster” – Lady Gaga
“He ate my heart and then he ate my brain”…yep, that sums up some of my biggest fears!

19.) WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?  “Praying for Daylight” – Rascal Flatts
Hmm…I promise y’all that I’m not spending my night pining over my ex.

20.) WHAT DO YOU WANT RIGHT NOW?  “Please come to Boston”  – Jacko Pierce
Well, lookie here…a song that has the potiential to be a great fit if it were true…there is a ramblin southern man in Boston that needs to get his rear in gear and come home to me….but then again, both of us could have over-idealized the relationship and we’d be better off if he went right on over to Denver or LA.

21.) WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?  “Champagne Supernova” – Oasis
You and I will never die….true story my friends.

22.) WHAT WILL YOU NAME THIS NOTE?  “Honesty” – Billy Joel
Well, this fits.

From an IM with an ex….

Me: And the thing is, that at that time, when we were 25, I don’t think either one of us thought that we were worthy of being loved.

Him: Yeah I know I didn’t; I got that sense from you but I didn’t know how to tell you how wrong you were about you and it didn’t occur to me that I might be wrong about me.

Ringing in the new year-2010 edition

New Year’s Eve 2009 was such a blast!  I started the night getting ready with some gorgeous ladies of  improv. 

Cara, Alaina, KL, Tara, and Greer

Wait, that’s not all the gorgeous ladies…where is Annabelle Blanche? Y’all know that she was primping and preparing for the new year right with us!  

Cara, Alaina, Annabelle Blanche, KL, Tara, and Greer

 That’s better!

From there I headed over to Arlington to a rocking fun party thrown by my good friend Kitty and her awesome fiancée.  This was a theme party…everyone needed to bring an accessory to share.  I brought a feather boa and a sword….As the pictures show, there were other much cooler accessories to wear once I got there!  My favorite accessory of the night was a Marilyn Monroe wig.  I was seriously tempted to take it with me when I left the next morning…but I didn’t want to start 2010 off with bad karma! 

Hmm...let's try this shot again...

Okay, we're getting there.....

Yes! Third time is the charm...I'm thinking of going short and curly...what do y'all think?

There was much dancing and singing of random songs throughout the night…here is my favorite photo series of Kitty and I…no telling what we are singing, but I can guarantee you that our version of the song was OFF. THE. CHARTS! 

  

 

 

I opted to be a good citizen and I spent the night on their couch.  That was one of my best decisions EVER because my gracious hosts served me warmed banana bread and fresh coffee the next morning.  Nothing like starting off a new year being served breakfast on the couch! 

And here’s a parting shot.  Please note that I’m teaching Kitty my trademarked “over the shoulder” pose…slowly but surely I’m spreading the word to all my friends: 

Proof I shared the Marilyn wig...but only because this cowboy hat looked even better on me!

Money in the “Bank of Tri”

Saturday I went for an easy breezy 6.5 mile run with some of the Team Z girls. About 3 miles into the run it started to snow. About 5 miles into the run, we decided to take a picture! 

Kerry, Alaina, Meghan, Cleo (the dog), Tracy, and Emily

We kept a pace of 14 minute miles…which is pretty awesome.  I’m probably more impressed by the pace than I am by the fact that we were out running in the snow!

The 2009 Tally

I am 30 years old and live with one girl roommate and my dog in the Nation’s capital. I’m wearing my blonde hair long, no bangs, but I do have layers around the face. I lost and gained weight this year, leaving me 40 pounds below where I started. I had the same job all year. I am single and have been for the year. I completed one marathon relay, one half marathon, two 5Ks, one swim meet, two sprint distance tris, and one international distance tri. I had my first “Did Not Finish” during an Olympic distance tri.

My greatest wants for 2009 were to be lighter in weight (I’m down 17%), debt (I’m down 8%), and fears (how does one measure this?)

My best moments this year: Being with Nikki at President Obama’s Inauguration, winning the first FIST match with “Fetch Rufus”, coming off the stage after an amazing DMG show at the DCAC where everything clicked and we were all in sync with each other.
My worst moment this year: Being so overwhelmed and stressed at work that I cried very ugly tears in front of my boss and her deputy. It wins the worst moment because I felt so powerless.
My proudest moment this year: Finishing Bassman Sprint under two hours and with a smile on my face. In fact, the whole blasted day was great! I bonded with my Z-mates, had enough energy after my race to offer course support, and I repaid the favor of countless others that have helped me finish a race when I thought I couldn’t take one more step forward by spending quality time with my friend Jacquie.
My happiest moment this year: Blowing out the candles on mine and Archie’s 30th Birthday cake. It was so wonderful to be surrounded by so many people that I love, including my friend Amber that came up from Louisiana.
My hardest moment this year: Learning that Charles had a stroke and then figuring out that I was the first person in my church family to understand how serious the situation had become. This is the closest I have been to death and it was beyond emotionally draining to help coordinate his care, put his household in order, and contact family members that he had not spoke to in over 15 years. It was also a life altering moment in time that has affected me in ways that are still to tender and vulnerable for me to blog about. I pray that the decisions I make today do not leave me alone at my death.
My worst decision this year: Falling back into bad habits due to the stress of my job.
My best decision this year: Moving in with Tara. She is an awesome and incredible friend and roommate.
My best purchase this year: My shiny red Dell computer
My biggest project this year: Losing weight

My greatest want for 2010: To let my light shine instead of letting my fear keep me in my current place. 

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us, it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” — Marianne Williamson

Typical

Overall Race Results from 2009

ROAD RACES
02/15/09 – GW Marathon Relay (7 miles) – 1:55:00 (Pace – 16:25)
03/08/09 – Disney Princess Half Marathon – 3:36:45 (Pace – 16:32)
03/29/09 – Scope it Out 5k – 48:11 (Pace – 15:32)
05/02/09 – Arlington Science Focus 5K – 46:00 (Pace – 14:50)

SWIM MEET
04/24/09 – Colony Zones Swim Meet – 1000 yards freestyle – 23:13

TRIATHLONS
05/10/09 – Kinetic Sprint – Overall: 2:45:01 – Swim Pace: 2:24 per 100 yards; Bike Pace: 12 miles per hour; Run Pace: 15:39 per mile

06/06/09 – Mooseman International Distance Tri – Overall: 5:09:11 – Swim Pace: 2:38 per 100 yards(.93 mile); Bike Pace: 11 miles per hour(27.25 miles); Run Pace: 17:14 per mile (6.2 miles)

08/15//09 – Luray Tri-Oly – DNF – Swim Pace: 02:48 per 100 yards(1500 Meters);

10/04/09 – Bassman Sprint– Overall: 1:57:22 – Swim Pace: 2:24 per 100 yards; Bike Pace: 15 miles per hour; Run Pace: 14:44 per mile

DMG at Source for Seasonal Disorder!

I “borrowed” all the text below from Sean’s blog!  I really would love for y’all to come out and see the shows!  DMG has a new director and a new format…plus we’ve been having lots of fun playing with each other.  It’s a good time for all!

XOXO!

This month I’m performing in two shows with DMG – my long-form improv troupe. Both shows are at Source (1835 14th Street, between T and S).

The price is “PAY WHAT YOU CAN,” which means you can be give us a dollar for the entire show. “Pay what you can” means exactly that! It’s up to you! Make a decision already!

More details:

• Thursday, Dec 10th
• Thursday, Dec 17th
• We’ll be doing around a 20 to 25 minute show, total show time is no more than an hour because,
• We’ll be joined by the super fun troupe The Entitlement League,
  Source serves beer and wine now,
• We hope to see you there!

It’s improv, so both shows will be different! Come to both and get a free high-five from Sean…okay okay…I’ll give you a high five as well!

Bassman Race Report

Bassman Sprint
10/04/09
Race Age: 30
Distance:
   0.4 Mile Swim
    12 Mile Bike
    5K Run
Overall: 1:57:22
0.4 Mile Swim: 17:02 (Pace: 2:24 per 100 yards)
TI: 3:45
12 Mile Bike: 47:53 (Pace: 15 miles per hour)
T2: 3:05
5K Run: 45:38 (Pace: 14:44 per mile)

Finished!

 

When it was all said and done, this was a really rough season. I had problems on the bike at Kinetic, a fever at Mooseman, and a DNF at Luray because I broke a spoke. My only goal for my last race of the season was to finish with a smile on my face….and if lucky…a sub 2 hour sprint!

 

Mission Accomplished!

 

Next up: Training for the Shamrock Half Marathon in VA Beach, VA!