New Addiction

After a 7:00 p.m. yoga class last night w/ Tracy the 5:15 a.m. alarm was not a welcome sound to say the least.  I’m not sure what it was that moved me to get up have a bowl of cereal and cup of coffee and get out the door – but whatever it was I would like to bottle and sell it.

I purposefully followed a lady into the cycling room that looked like she knew what she was doing.  Watched her adjust her seat and tried to act like I knew what I was doing as I adjusted mine.  I hopped on the bike and that was the last time today that my legs have felt normal.

Melissa, our instructor, had the sweet kindness to begin the class by saying “Everything is optional.  Everyone can work at their own pace.”  But once she sat on her bike I think she became a different person.  First observation, the LOUD, rhythmic music makes you feel like you could ride a million miles (cue Boom, Boom Pow re-mix).  Second observation, first observation is null after 10 min.

At one point sweet Melissa was yelling “Get up, get up, push, push, push!!!”  A few moments later she was sitting on the floor in front of the bike next to me pushing a towel up against the bike’s spin wheel yelling “get up, push, push, push, sit down… now get up, push!!”  In my sweat drenched and dripping head I’m asking myself… isn’t she making it harder for that girl?  And that’s the way it went for 45 min until everyone got their turn at Melissa’s one-on-one attention.

I’m already craving my next class…. sadistic, I know.

OH… and as I’m always making mental notes to myself… this morning’s was a reminder that post-spin-class legs don’t take the stairs without jiggling like J-E-L-L-O —– quite embarrassing actually!

Such Sweet Bliss

After three weeks in a wretched boot up to my knee and three more weeks of choosing what to wear based upon what goes with comfortable running shoes… I FINALLY JUST JOGGED MY FIRST MILE!

Oh how good it felt when my feet hit the soft track, my heart rate went up, and I started to sweat.  The day the doc showed me the MRI and said “You won’t be running the Country Music Half Marathon and I want you on crutches wearing a boot” is still a very vivid memory.  The crutches lasted until I got to my car threw them in and then proceeded to wail like a child.   I cried and begged and pleaded for the stress fracture to not be there.  I cried for the loss of something I love to do.  Six weeks seemed like an eternity at the time.  And I won’t dare say it still doesn’t feel that way.  In the grand scheme of things though I’m sure this will only be small potatoes.

The waiting has made today so much sweeter!  It will be a slow recovery process, but I am so thankful.

Crown of Jewels

I haven’t thought of the image of a ‘crown of jewels’ since I was a child.  Until recently.

A couple of things have brought back that child-like image of this golden crown laden with diamonds, rubies, and saffires.

My sixth grade teacher, Ms. Pickett died this week.  One of my memories of Ms. Pickett is her walking out of our split 5th and 6th grade classroom because we made her cry.  (God forgive me?) Ms. Pickett was a God-send to so many people.  My sister, brother and I would sometimes catch a ride to school with her along w/ several other kids that were along the way.  She drove a gray, rattly, old station wagon.  I was embarrassed by it at the time.  She raised Chris, Kathy, and Lilly (several of the kids I went to school with) and was also a foster parent to so many other children.  Ms. Pickett loved children – that was her calling.  I had toothpaste smeared all over my face at a Middle school girls slumber party at her house.  Ms. Pickett must have been somewhere in her 80’s.  And when I heard about her passing this week… I stopped and said a prayer for the family that is dealing with her loss.  And then I praised God, because there is not a doubt in my mind that Ms. Pickett stands on streets of gold today.  Without question – she is wearing a crown of jewels that causes her to stand out among the saints.

My mom was recently telling me about a friend of hers that is dying of cancer.  Every single time my mom tells me Melanie stories my eyes well up with tears.  Life is so short.  Expectations are often shattered.  Melanie didn’t take a single sick day in somewhere around 15-20 years.  Not a single sick day.  Melanie was diagnosed and is now losing the battle to the cancer in her body.  My mom has walked with 2-3 other dear friends and their fights against cancer.  But you know the thing that amazes me about this?  None of these women were believers prior to their battles.  I’ve observed, as you walk with someone through an experience like this, you help them laugh, you meet the little needs they have – this affords you the opportunity to show them a love that is eternal.  There is a crown with many jewels waiting in heaven for my mom.  More importantly than that… she is going to have a reunion with the women that she helped lead to eternity.

That image of a gaudy golden crown with multi-colored jewels stuck.  What may have been just a Sunday school childhood image has become much more real to me this week.

Are you a fan of Motown Music?

Sunday night the family packed picnic baskets, blankets, and lawn chairs and headed to The Carnton Plantation. We had quite a spread of food thanks to mom and Jen. Delicious summer treats like cucumber sandwiches, cantaloupe, fruit tea – yummy! What was my contribution to this picnic feast, you ask?? Publix brand Oatmeal Cookies and Jelly Belly Sour Cherries. El lame-o! I know, but those Oatmeal Cookies were a hit!

It was easily 93 degrees with 99.9% humidity, but the heat wasn’t going to stop us or about 1,000 other people from having a good time. By the end of the evening (after most folks had had enough alcohol to loosen ’em up) folks were having a good ol’ time dancing to the Temptations, Diana Ross and The Supremes, Stevie Wonder, and Earth, Wind and Fire. Now that’s music! As I was enjoying the Scat Springs Band play hit after hit it took me back. Now before you start calculating my age; I’ll go ahead and say that most of these songs were recorded before I was born. My parents must have been a little late getting on board the Soul Train, but once they did they were all out fans. I can remember listening to The Temptations, Smokey Robinson, and The Four Tops over and over again – what great memories!

Anyway… the family had a great time last night making new memories with little Jake dancing to the music. At some point during the evening I couldn’t help but wonder… what will be the Motown of Jake’s generation? What songs will be replayed 40 years from now with folks singing along and smiling at the memories they bring?

Jake’s Stevie Wonder impression…

Goals for 2008

One of my goals for ’08 is to learn Photoshop. I’ve had the software for probably 5 years and never gotten further than screwing up a whole lot of photos. After checking several books out at the library and taking some online tutorials I am making slow progress.

Exploring the Blog World

Thought I’d take a leap into the world of blogging. We’ll see how long this phase lasts. I am known (probably mostly by myself and family) for starting projects because they seem intriguing. The excitement to learn is what gets me. I get so excited about a new project/skill that “I’m going to learn everything about it”. For example knitting, crocheting, stamping, hmmm… running. Typically, a few months later I get bored, frustrated, tired, or injured and the project ends up in the closet. What’s that phrase “jack of all trades, master of none”?

Well maybe this will be a place where my latest interests can be spelled out for the world to see. So what are my latest interests you say? Well I suppose the future posts, if there are to be any, will reveal that.

This is a hint to one of them.