The Butterfiles are Starting to Flutter.

In 12 hours I will be at my friend's house and we will be heading to the start of our half marathon (after picking up 2 other running friends). You may be looking at your clock, mine says 2:49 pm on Friday June 14. Yes, I will be up at 2 AM getting ready for a race. My stomach is already getting antsy. Although I have done half marathons before, this one feels different. Why? Well I haven't been able to shake my shin splints. They will feel better then come back with a vengeance. I have contemplated not going to the race at all but part of me can't handle that thought of not even trying. I haven't done much running this week just to let my shins rest. Other than this week I have put in a lot of work, and consumed more ibuprofen then normal for me. I'm nervous my shins will rebel before I can finish the race. Also, I never get up at 2 am so I'm not sure how my body is going to handle that disruption in it's schedule. I'm worried and I felt like posting it here. In 12 hours I will be on my way, I will be pumped and thinking positive thoughts. I'll have my new race shirt I made (I'll post pics later). I'm pretty sure I'll be okay. But if you believe in God, say a prayer for me. If you believe in Karma send some good vibes my way, I can't seem to shake this nervousness.

Thanks.

Matchmaker, matchmaker

While at work, designing away, I frequently listen to my Pandora "Seventy-Six Trombones" station. On this particular occasion the song "Matchmaker", from Fiddler on the Roof, started playing. At the beginning of the song one of the sisters says something like, young people can't be expected to make such a decision on their own. I laughed aloud. I started thinking about my own life and making that decision on my own, as most young people do these days.

This thought process led to, what if there were still village matchmakers that helped your parents pick out who you were going to marry? I started thinking about the people that lived in the neighborhood where I grew up. I would probably be married to someone in that neighborhood.. or maybe a son of an old friend of one of my parents. Thinking about the boys in my neighborhood, I mean they were pretty cool, most of them. Some of them I had a hard time with for one reason or another but the general population of the neighborhood thought they were super great boys. Weird, weird thought.

On the one hand I would have been saved from some of the heartbreaking dating experiences I had but because of those experiences I feel that I am a stronger, better person. What kind of person would I be without those experiences? I don't know, I don't think I want to know....Well I kind of do. I wouldn't mind having a peek into an alternate universe where I had an arrange marriage, see what I was like. I would also like to take a peek into the alternate universe where Mitt Romney won the last Presidential election just to see where America would be now. Anyway. Just some food for thought from my mind today.

Happy Thursday everybody. 

Moving with Haste

And running.

What? This topic again? I'm sure you're sick of hearing or reading about it but it is basically the only hobby of mine, for the time being.

Last Saturday I had a 10k race that I signed up for however it conflicted with my longer run in preparation for my half marathon I have in about 10 days. I decided to run 5 miles before the race and then the 6.2 miles of the race to get my 11 miles in for the day. I almost missed the last bus to the start line because I took my first 5 miles rather easy. One of my friends that was a volunteer for the race told me that she expected to see me in first place. I told her not to get her hopes up because I had already put in 5 miles for the day but that I would still try but not to get her hopes up.

Along the race path I'm pretty sure I saw Jerry Sloan (former Utah Jazz coach) walking his cute little dog. Or maybe it was just little compared to him. I did not make it past the finish line first but 13th. Whenever people passed me part of my mind would be like, "oh no you don't"! But another part is like, "um it's either pick up the pace just to pass them or finish, they have fresh legs you don't". I would contemplate it and then maintain the pace that I was going, an average of 9:30 per mile which is pretty fast for me.

My music choice for this race "shuffle". I don't have a huge variety of music on my iPod. A few workout mixes (each like 30 mins long), Brian Regan (stand up comedy), The Beatles & Les Miserables. I normally listen to Pandora but decided not to that day. What a little roller coaster. I would go from Les Miserables, passion with the urge to cry, to Brian Regan, laughing along the way. It was kind of funny but both helped me make it through the last little up hill bit of my race.

After the race my husband made the comment that I don't seem to bat an eye at 11 miles or half marathons anymore. I thought about it and they don't intimidate me anymore cause I know I can do them one way or another I'll get there. And I think part of it is from swimming, as I talked about here. But also after doing the Ragnar Trail Relay running on normal roads feels like a cake walk.. er run, even with shin splint issues. Ya running. I think I will always love it.

It will Always be Mine.

Yesterday I dipped my toes in the pool for the first time since last August. If you have ever been away from your home for more than a week, you know that moment when you get home you are glad you left but you are so excited to be back? That is what that moment felt like for me. Sitting on the edge of the pool putting on my swim cap and goggles with the smell of chlorine in the air. I love the smell of chlorine. If there were a car air freshener that smelled like it, I would probably use it. That chlorine smell brings back so many great memories that I wouldn't trade for anything. I played water polo all through high school and was on the swim team my senior year. Somehow I went from hating swim lessons (the one year I remember taking them as a child) and sticking my face in the water to being a swimmer. I think I learned the basics of swimming and I was done with swim lessons. I could swim enough to keep my head above water if needed. I didn't like to put my face in the water and never managed to grow out of that. I was the girl that couldn't jump in the pool without plugging her nose which also meant diving didn't happen cause I looked funny plugging my nose and trying to dive. However, in high school I had some friends that were on the swim team and they convince me to play water polo. I probably looked so silly trying to do any stroke other than freestyle but I learned to love that game, regardless of my previous dislike for having my face submerged in water and fear of drowning. 

If you have no idea what water polo is here is a good video to check out:

She uses some different words than I would but "The Pitch" is the playing area or "field" so to speak. The "Sin Bin" is the ejection box. And I think when she says that is it similar to football she means soccer. 

Another good video for it would be this one:

While swimming I thought about my swimmer and water polo player life and I came to the conclusion that it was probably the best decision I made for myself. I have always been a shy person with very little confidence. Playing water polo and swimming helped that a lot. There were days (sometimes twice a day) that I really felt like I couldn't swim another lap or do another pop up (a pop up is when you are treading water and then pop up as high as you can out of the water and no touching the bottom because that is not allowed in water polo. Also, coaches expected you to be about to get at least was it high out of the water). Through swimming and water polo I realized I could accomplish hard things. I always managed to swim that next lap and the next set after that one. Probably the most terrifying day was when my coach put me in as goalie in the middle of a game. Up until that point I don't think I had spent much time in the cage (the goal), maybe 5 minutes max. After that game I was the new team goalie. I felt so inadequate to be in such a position, the last stand of defense a team has against another team. Practices became harder because I had to work my legs, treading while holding a weighted medicine ball above my head and trying to keep my shoulders out of the water while doing so. It was tough but eventually my team started calling me The Wall. I came across this article (I think I already shared it on facebook) and in reading it over all I could think was, that is so true! I think swimming is great and on my team we had the super popular kids and geeks alike. I feel like it is a sport for everyone not just the "jocks". Based on my own personal experience I know that it helps build confidence and can change people for the better. 

5 Things you will take away from Swimming

1. You’re part of an amazing community. We are separated by a few degrees of separation. It’s a big, open fraternity, but even better as we all have the shared background of two-a-days and countless weekends in poorly ventilated pools. This community extends far beyond the pool, as you will see in the years to come.

Even ten years removed from competitive swimming I can go to a local meet and find a few familiar faces in coaches, and the younger siblings of friends and people I’d raced against. Even some of the officials remain, having stuck with the sport even long after their own kids had moved on. The next generation and the longevity of those who have no commitment to the sport outside of their love for it, and this is a testament to the bond we grow with this sport.

2. Exercise and Fitness will never intimidate you. This is something you probably already know. You’ve gone through your share of Hell Weeks, and New Years Day 10×1000’s to not bat an eye at any physical challenge. Swimmers have ridiculous cardiovascular fitness, and as such when athletes from other sports complained about their workouts the gripes typically fall on deaf ears.

3. That discipline and mental toughness you honed as a swimmer will serve you well. You will enjoy not having to get up at 4:30am for morning practice long after you leave the arena of competitive swimming. This I can promise you. But the discipline that got you up that early will always be within you, ready to be seized upon when you find something else you are passionate about.

4. ‘What if’ Syndrome will pop up when the Olympics roll around. I get this to the point I can barely enjoy watching swimming events that used to be my forte. Thoughts like “If my shoulder hadn’t crapped out…” bubble to the surface. Avoid this passing sense of regret by leaving everything at the pool so that you aren’t watching the Olympics ten years later wondering if you could get into good enough shape to swim in Rio in 2016. Regardless of the expectations you have for your swimming career, whether it’s going to the Olympics, getting a scholarship to your local college team, or just making this summer’s traveling squad, embrace the opportunities for travel, competition and camaraderie that swimming provides.

5. The pool will always be home. You will always be a swimmer. People play basketball, playfootball or hockey, but you are a swimmer. It’s a sport that most people don’t understand or appreciate until the Olympics roll around, and that’s fine. Let them have their sports, for swimming will always be profoundly ours.

It will belong to the age-groupers struggling to get that first cut. To the teenagers trying to get noticed by a university program. To the athletes competing at the Olympics just happy to be there. From age grouper to World Record holder the sport all belongs to us, and while we may throw a “every other sport gets all the attention” tantrum in once in a while, in a lot of ways we should be happy with our place on the sporting totem pole.

To this day swimming still feels “mine,” as impossible of a feeling that may come across as. The quietness of the pool, the stillness of an empty lane, the quiet stare of that black line, will always be mine. Yours. Ours.

(from: http://swimswam.com/5-things-you-will-take-away-from-swimming/)

Made it to the State Swim Meet, my team is on the far left

Yea I thought I was really cool. 

And just so you know the name on my swim cap is "Anna-mal"

And She was Running

This weekend I survived the Ragnar Trail Relay in Zions. Some of you may remember that about 6 months ago I did the same thing, sort of (if you don't you can read it here). This time it was the real deal, the first Ragnar Trail Relay! Thankfully Mother Nature was on our side this time. The sun was shining in a clear blue sky. It was windy when we first got there but it died down once the sun set. Our start time was at 1pm, I thought it was great weather for some running. I was runner #5 so my first run didn't start until about 5pm. I started on the yellow trail, on this trail there is about a mile of what feels like straight up hill. Not to mention that it was also sandy. It was like running on a beach while trying to run uphill. My 2nd run started about shortly after 11 pm. Running in the night in the middle of nowhere with only a headlamp is not my favorite thing but I survived. And my final run was about 9 am, 7.5 miles, it was a rough 7.5 miles. I felt good that morning, after some sleep, and started off running that red trail once I started hitting some decent incline my legs felt like they might give out. Speed walking became my friend.

On my 7.5 mile run/speed walk I had a lot of time to think and I thought about the "running community". About 90% of the people that passed me along any other the trails would always say something encouraging. Things like, "looking good" or "keep it up!" Whenever there was someone that was moving particularly slow, seemed to be struggling or were stopped all together they probably got asked a million times if they were okay. I know I asked everyone that I passed. It's like we take care of each other! It's nice, it gives me hope in humanity. It's not just at race time this happens. I am in a running club and the same thing happens there. Runners take care of other runners and cheer others on to keep them going. In my mind I like to think that runners don't just apply this to other runners but other people they come across everyday.

I love running, I'm no pro but I feel like I am a champ after doing 15.5 miles within 20 hours time. That is the farthest distance I have ever run and probably some of the hardest miles I have fought through. Trail running is a whole different beast from pavement and treadmill, which adds to how awesome I feel for accomplishing what I did. Since I have now done 15.5 hard miles I have toyed with the idea of doing a full marathon (26.2 miles for those that don't know). Only 10.7 more miles and that would be a marathon. I don't know, I'm not sure I'm that crazy, so far I'm only half crazy. I'm going to think about this marathon things some more and I will definitely write about it and probably the blood, sweat and tears that go into something of that magnitude!

I'm like a Mom

Only I have no children...

I don't even have pets that I claim as children...

I've had several friends tell me I am like the mom of the group. I take care of everyone and make sure that they have everything that they need.

To some they may think, "awe that's so sweet of you." My thoughts are, it's not bad but sometimes it feels like a curse. For example, in preparing for a road trip I went snack shopping. Staring at the shelf of snacks I wonder how much is going to be enough? There will be 4 of us on a 11-ish hour trip (depending on who is driving). I start putting things in my basket (had to get a basket because I knew it would help limit the number of things I bought), usually starting with a smaller package then thinking, "well what if everyone wants some then I need enough for 4 people to snack on." Trading the smaller bag for a bigger bag, I wonder if maybe this is too much, yet it stays in my basket. We'll need sweet, salty, chewy, crunchy and everything in between to make sure every one has anything they could possibly crave! Making my way to the checkout stand my basket full and a box of crackers in my hand because it wouldn't fit. On my way home I started thinking about all the stuff that I bought... this is too much. There are 4 of us not a family of 10, I think I bought enough for 10. Not to mention that the other 2 people traveling with my hubby and I are adults and capable of buying their own snacks, they don't need me to buy them for them like they are children. Thinking about it now I laugh and my husband laughed when he saw everything I bought. BUT we will definitely not go hungry, even if we get stranded for a week we would probably still have a sufficient amount of food on which we could survive.

This "mom factor" that goes on in my brain I always over plan things. If I have a get together I usually have too much food because I stress about running out of it and people not having enough to eat. Not to mention while people are over I want to make sure everyone is having fun and enjoying themselves. I have gotten better, I can actually enjoy a party now rather then spend the whole party time stressing about everyone else. There are still times when I can't seem to control it, road trip snacks is obviously one of those times, maybe next road trip I will do better.

Flossing February

March is here. I can't believe it. Last month, after a visit to the dentist, I decided to set a goal to floss my teeth everyday for the month of February and so I called it Flossing February. I even made myself a calendar with cute toothy letters on it so that I would have something to put stickers on for each successful flossing. My chart has maybe 8 stickers on it. I didn't do very well but I did better than I have in the past. I probably doubled the number of times I have personally flossed my teeth in my lifetime. Okay that's a lie, but I know I have never flossed my teeth 8 times in one month. Flossing is such a struggle for me... well proper flossing. In my mouth I have 2 permanent retainers, one on the bottom and one on top. In order to properly floss those suckers I have to get a "plastic needle"(that is made for such things), thread my floss through and stab it between my teeth. That is a little dramatic but my bottom teeth have gotten accustom to it my 2 big front teeth have not. It hurts and I don't like it and so some times I just don't do that part and just floss like I floss all my other teeth. Another thing I have is a fake tooth held in place by a titanium screw. It doesn't make flossing difficult but the gap towards the bottom of that tooth and the two beside it is larger than the others. It is amazing the things that can hide in there. Anyway Flossing February was a flop in the sense that I didn't floss every single day BUT It was an improvement which I am content with.

On another note, I was looking through my journal looking for the first movie my hubby and I went to see together (before we were even a thing, I mean his little sister came along). Once I found the info I was looking for (we went to go see Blindside fyi) I just kept reading. Next thing I know I am crying. I got to the part when we broke up for the first time and I felt so sad. Then I'm sitting there on our bed crying and I'm thinking why am I crying I know how this all ends, victory is mine in the end of this dating story. Maybe I should avoid reading my journal because whenever I do the emotions that were there when I wrote it always get stirred up inside all over again. After I finally put it away I just wanted to hold my hubby and tell him that I love him and grateful for where we are and all that we have overcome thus far in our lives together. I'll wait til he gets home =)