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Archive for the ‘Working Out’ Category

Twenty – Fourteen

Posted in Charleston, Christmas, CKP, dogs, Favorite People, Georgia, Health, Working Out, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 7, 2014| 2 Comments »

These Twenty Dash years are speeding along rapidly, although I have to admit that I was happy to see 2013 exit the stage.  My ankle surgery in October and the government shutdown were rather disruptive forces, and then in mid November I developed what was inconclusively walking pneumonia or a vicious viral infection.  Either way, by the Friday after Thanksgiving I was in the bed.  Two and a half weeks of antibiotics, a steroid pack, and five sick days later, and it was almost Christmas.  Seriously, I didn’t drink alcohol or coffee for almost three weeks, in December, to give y’all an idea of how ill I truly was. Obviously, ankle surgery and a terrible hacking cold with a racking cough that last a month is not the worst thing that could happen, but it did make me appreciate all the things I take for granted.  Like walking, and breathing.  It made me a little more compassionate towards the subjective complaints of the claimants.  Additionally, in the instance of my ankle and my respiratory difficulties, I was required to see more than one doctor and be my own health advocate to fight for additional treatment options and testing.  Not because my doctors aren’t competent, but because many of them are overworked and jaded and under appreciated, and lacked the time or effort to waste on an otherwise seemingly healthy young person with no real health risk factors.    I’m not going to get into all the nuances involved in health care, suffice it to say, being sick or injured sucks, and if you don’t like the answers you are receiving, keep asking your questions, find additional opinions.

When I woke up from being sick and realized that it was almost Christmas, I had to play catch up on the festivities.  My friends and I threw an oyster roast/skeet shoot, which we’ve decided will be known as the First Annual Christmas Clays.

Here are my friends shooting skeet.

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They were some of the best oysters I’ve ever had the pleasure of destroying.

We had a blue grass band, oysters, skeet, venison chili,ham, Frog Island Punch, koozies, and a lot of fun with all of the frogs.  The party was held at my friend Zan’s family’s property, and Zan and his father are sculptors, and the property is littered with artwork.

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Shannon and me playing in the froggy scrap yard.

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Me and my favorite frog.

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This is Jack, and Briscoe was a really great sport.

Christmas brought the arrival of a new family member at my parents house –

Christmas Day with besties from home.

Christmas Day with besties from home.

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Polar Bear Plunge with some of the greatest friends ever!

Christmas was great, and I got to see a lot of old friends.  New Year’s Eve was Alicia and Bryan’s beautiful wedding.  And New Year’s Day, we all jumped in the ocean to celebrate 2014, and then we ate hoppin’ johns and collards, with mac and cheese, and the best wings in america, washed down with a game changer at Home Team.

Overall, the last two weeks of December more than made up for feeling like I was on restriction from the beginning of October until the middle of December.  And 2013 will always be the year that I really found a home in Charleston, with amazing friendships, a job I love, and an unrivaled picturesque natural setting.

As a side note, I do have to admit that I’m currently freezing to death at my house, whilst wearing an obscene amount of clothing and my uggs, wrapped in a blanket, with my arm warmers.  My power still works, but my house was not designed for the cold, and it’s all my little heater can do to keep up.  This is the coldest weather I’ve experienced since I moved to Charleston in Fall 2010.  The upside is that it’s suppose to be in the 70s this weekend. I’ve started running again, and yesterday I ran two miles, which is the furthest I’ve run since I stopped running in December 2012.  I’m looking forward to my first yoga class since September tonight, and can’t wait to be in the suffocating heat, after this freezing day.

Speaking of freezing, this weather has brought to my attention that I only have the bare minimum of cold weather gear.  I’m going skiing in February, and I think I need some new gear.  You know, like gloves with fingers.  None of my gloves have fingers.  Suggestions?

You kids try to stay warm out there, and if winter ever gets to be too much, come on down to Charleston some weekend, the cold weather never lasts for more than a couple of days.  I promise to take you to Home Team and to an oyster roast.  My new year’s resolutions are obviously to blog more, and to get back into fighting shape.  I’m going to get back on the mat, back on the tennis court, and take some things out on the pavement.

Cheers to 2014 being the best year yet!  Happy New Year!

The Big Bridge

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I’m friends with the monster that’s under my bed.

Posted in Charleston, CKP, Current Affairs, Difficulties, dogs, Favorite People, Health, Television, Travel, Working Out on November 19, 2013| 1 Comment »

Getting back to real life has been more difficult that I anticipated.  It’s been six weeks and one day since my surgery, and I’ve been back at work for more than three weeks.  I may have hit the ground a little aggressively, but there were some things I could not help. I could not help that I HAD to go see Libby run in the New York Marathon the first week in November.  It’s not my fault that it got cancelled last year. Libby had to train twice, and the least I could do was rebook my trip.  Plus, I really wanted to go, and I needed to see Betsy and Andrew and meet sweet baby Cash.  I can’t help it that being in New York necessitates a lot of walking.  Going to New York left me in the Boot for an extra week, but I was able to get around surprisingly well, and I don’t think the extra boot walking caused any lasting damage.

I’ve had the opportunity to see a lot of music this month, which I was not expecting.  The first weekend I was back in Charleston, someone gave me a ticket to the Robert Earl Keen show at the Charleston Music Hall, at the last minute, so I had to go to that.  Then Michael Franti was at the Music Farm and I went with my sweet friend Anita.  Finally, The Avett Brothers played at the Coliseum last week, and those tickets were purchased this summer.  All three shows were fantastic.  I’ve seen REK and The Avett Brothers at the Georgia Theater, and it’s hard to compare any show to a Theater show, but the Charleston Music Hall is a really cool venue if you ever get a chance to see it, and the Avett Brothers are a completely different band than they were in the Georgia Theater days.  When I first saw the Avett Brothers in 2007, it was three guys, and the entire show was high energy Bluegrass Ska music.  Now there are seven or eight band members, and it’s a much more professional production.  It’s nice to watch a band grow up.  The show last week was one of the best shows I’ve seen in a long time.  It was well paced, with lots of old music, and lots of new music, and we stood up the entire time.  The only thing I did not understand was the couple with the baby in the Bjorn in front of us.  Or the other couple with the two boys, aged maybe four and six.  The two boys were clearly miserable, with the four year old plugging his ears the whole time.  How is that fun for anyone involved?  And they stayed almost the entire show.  It’s not normal for kids to stay out til 11 on a school night, right?

Speaking of music, I’ve been enjoying the new Katy Perry album.  Hate all you want, she’s fun.  Also, I love Eminem.  I tolerate Rihanna when she is playing with Eminem.  I love that this new song is about seeming crazy.  I realized the other day that a casual observer would think I spend all day talking to myself.  But the reality is that not I’m talking to myself, I’m talking to the inanimate objects around me.  Example, I’m pulling sheets out of the dryer, and they are not dry,  “Dude!  You aren’t dry at all!  Look at this, you’ve gotten all wadded and tangled up, you are never going to dry that way.  Get back in there.”

The weather has been crazy, yesterday it was 83 degrees, 90% humidity.  This morning it was 50 degrees, 60% humidity, with winds 20 mph.  The former is a lot hotter than you’d think, and the latter is a lot colder than you’d expect.  I’ve completed all of the levels of candy crush, and now we wait for an update.  In television news, you should be watching The Blacklist.  That is the only new television show I can definitely vouch for as amazing.  If you watch Homeland and Scandal, you should be reading this weekly blog series The Heroine Watch.  It definitely enhances what otherwise has been a season of extremely depressing and upsetting story lines.

I can’t wait until I can run and go to yoga and play tennis again, I’m hoping to be able to start doing more in the next couple of week.  I’ve been walking a mile in the morning and a mile at night, and standing up at my desk during the day, and I’ve been able to do that with occasional pain.  The range of motion in my ankle is limited in all directions, but I believe that it is getting a little better every day.  I still have some numbness in my big toe and on the outside of my heel, but the scar is healing well.

Until then, Briscoe and her pink gorilla are making sure my yoga mat feels loved.

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Os Trigonum Crush Saga

Posted in CKP, Health, Working Out, yoga on October 6, 2013| 3 Comments »

I’m having surgery in the morning to have an extra bone removed from my ankle.  It’s called os trigonum, and it occurs in about 10% of the population.  It doesn’t bother most people, but a series of unfortunate events can lead to the bone becoming inflamed and it can cause all sorts of problems.  It’s a problem that plagues ballet dancers, and can also be called “the nutcracker syndrome.”  From what I understand, it’s hard to diagnose, and not a common injury unless you happen to be a ballet dancer.  I am not a ballet dancer.  I guess I’m just gifted at being different.  Paul said maybe I’m just an especially evolved individual (the fact that I was born without my lateral incisor teeth supports this hypothesis).

ostrigonumfinal 0199210896-os-trigonum 1coverstory-Figure-4-Os-Trigonum

In fall of 2012, I was going to yoga two or three times a week, playing tennis once or twice a week, and trying to get a few runs in.  I started running a mile and a half before yoga, and I really enjoyed being outside and then getting the awesome stretch of yoga.  I was playing enough tennis to not lose every game, and I had a string of marathon matches.  At some point in October, my foot started to hurt.  Towards the end of November, I had a really long, really cold tennis match, and I could barely walk by time it was over.  Like an idiot, I went on with my plans for the Reindeer Run, and I played one more tennis match in December.  I was convinced that if I stopped running and playing tennis for most of December and a couple weeks in January, that it would get better.  Obviously, I should have curtailed the traipsing around downtown Charleston in high heels.  But Christmas and the New Year just scream high heels to me, and being tall is fun, and I’ve been wearing high heels with no real problems for most of my adult life.  I wore heels every day for four years, and I don’t wear them every day anymore, so who knew it was that big of a deal?

I mentioned back in January that I thought I had broken my foot.  In February, I was diagnosed with posterior tibial tendonitis and planter fasciitis, and I wore a big tall boot for a full month, and I tried just about every NSAID imaginable.  I was extremely diligent with my NSAIDs and my boot, and I basically went to work, came home, and iced my ankle for a month.  I played a ton of candy crush.  In March, Briscoe tried to keep my entertained, and I had an MRI, that was basically negative.  I was able to get it together to walk around during the masters, but after the tournament my foot still hurt a lot, so I wore the boot for another three weeks.  The hardest part was that the pain moved around.  Sometimes my toes hurt, and some times the top of my ankle hurt, sometimes the back of my ankle, sometimes my posterior tendon was absolutely killing me.  The bottom of my foot hurt, right in my arch.  The most frustrating part was that I couldn’t figure out what made it worse, and what made it better.

I went to a foot surgeon in Charleston, and I went to a foot surgeon in Augusta.  They both said that I had tendonitis, although the one in Augusta was sure there was something else going on.  Neither doctor had much to offer as far as a game plan.  The one in Augusta said I could try physical therapy, the doctor in Charleston said he was sure physical therapy would exacerbate the problem.  The Charleston doctor diagnosed me with a “subtle cavus foot” and sent me to get orthotics to correct the fact that the arch in my right foot was higher than the one on the left.  The Charleston doctor kept telling me how tight my ankle cords were in my right foot, and that my problem was never going to get better if I couldn’t improve my ankle range of motion.  I promised him I stretched religiously, and he said I should stretch more.  .  Both doctors agreed maybe I shouldn’t worry about it for a while.

I stopped worrying about.  I figured if it was going to hurt when I did absolutely nothing, then I might as well do something and have it hurt.  I started going back to yoga, and I started running a mile once or twice a week.  The orthotics essentially eliminated my planter fasciitis.  With my planter fasciitis improving, I was able to increase my activity level without immediate pain increases.  Strangely, I noticed that going to yoga two days in a row, even for just an easy 45 minute basic class, was something I could not tolerate.  If tendonitis was the main problem, I would have expected the running to be more painful than the yoga.  I also noticed increased pain when it rained.

However, after about three weeks of this new “screw it, I do what I want” attitude, I left my keys at the deli by my house on a monday night, and by the time I walked back to my house, I had about five minutes to sprint back before it closed for the night.  I sprinted back, in my new Brooks glycerin and my orthotic inserts, and I got my keys, but I felt like my ankle was angry about the sprinting.

The next morning, a Tuesday, when I started to walk down my steps, my ankle locked up.  I’ve never had my ankle lock up.  I don’t guess I’ve ever really had a joint lock up at all, because this was a new, excruciatingly upsetting experience.  My ankle was stuck in a pointed position, like when I put my foot on the ground and tried to take a step, I couldn’t put my entire foot on the ground, and the attempt caused me blinding pain.  I hobbled around on my toe for a about five minutes, and then my foot magically corrected itself and I could walk normally.

I had seen the Charleston doctor the day before (of course), but I was able to see the Augusta doctor that Friday on my way to Athens for the Georgia South Carolina game.  I explained to the Augusta doctor about how my ankle locked up, and he said he wanted to look at my MRI again.  He came back in the exam room, looked at my ankle, and said, does this hurt? and I yelped, YES!  He looked up at me and said, GOOD NEWS!  I think I know what’s wrong with you!  And I can fix it! (when I had my appendix taken out, after the CT scan came back, the doctors seemed extremely pleased that i did actually have appendicitis, and that I “got” to have surgery.  To be fair, I think that kid was a med student, and I guess I sort of get it because it is better than the alternatives, but I feel like the enthusiasm can feel vaguely awkward).

Augusta doctor explained I have an extra bone in my ankle, and that he’s never taken this bone out of a person’s foot who didn’t see improvement from the surgery.  I found that encouraging and said sign me up! (My ankle has continued to lock up off and on, and I would do most anything to have that stop happening, because it is most unpleasant.

So.  Here we are.  I originally took two weeks of sick leave to have this surgery, but since the government is still shut down*, that leave has been cancelled, and I have plenty of time to convalesce in the comforts of my parents backyard.  I never have to have a real cast, and he said I can walk on my foot as soon as I feel comfortable, but that I should spend a week or two with it elevated and taking it easy.  I will be in a short boot for the next month, but after that I’m allowed to ease back into whatever I want to do, which is exciting.

Wish me luck, I will be here catching up on all my television shows for the next week to ten days.  XOXO

* if I wasn’t having surgery, I would buy a plane ticket somewhere and go on a trip.  Tomorrow.  Too bad.

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The spring that never ends

Posted in Health, Working Out, yoga, tagged , , on May 21, 2013| Leave a Comment »

This might be extremely difficult to believe, but I think of things I want to blog about every day. But then I get distracted, and the blogging never happens.  I actually have a note on my iphone notepad that has a list of things I meant to blog about.  For example, the most recent three are as follows:

1.  Standing up in airplanes

2.  Dick’s sporting goods is like a disappointing date that had such potential

3.  Low music and television standards

Hopefully I will get to those topics one day.  Today I’m going to tell you about my foot.  In the past week I’ve seen two well respected orthopedic foot surgeons.  Why two?  Partially because I had the opportunity, and partially because I’m a hypochondriac.  I had an MRI, both doctors read my MRI.  Both surgeons agree on three things, my posterior tibial tendon is irritated, nothing is torn or broken, and I’m not going to further aggravate it with stretching.  One thinks it is entirely too early to consider surgery, one thinks it’s been hurting long enough where it won’t heal on it’s own without surgery.  One said I should walk all I want and go to yoga and not think about it for a while.  The other one said I should go out and run and do whatever I want and maybe further aggravate it so he can better pinpoint the problem.

The one thing I’m sure of is that the boot made my foot feel ten times worse than anything else, including walking all week at the tournament.  I’ve decided that I”m going to not think about it anymore.  I’m not going to take the anti-inflammatory anymore, at least for a little while.  I’m going to go to yoga, and I’m going to ease back into that with a lot of modifications.  I’m going to make a couple yoga classes my goal, and walk around everywhere I want to go.  I might wear heels one night if I’m feeling especially crazy, even though that is probably the worst thing I could do.  I’m going to go to New York at the end of next week, and I’m going to walk my little heart out, but I might tape my foot up if I think it helps.  And I’m going to ignore it.

Wish me luck, I’m off to Cara’s yoga class to get a good sweat in and listen to my friend talk over awesome music for an hour.  It’s good for the soul.  We’ll see about the sole.  Gah, STOP.

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I see true summer in your eyes

Posted in Basketball, Charleston, Music, quotes, Religion, Thoughts, Working Out, yoga on March 30, 2013| 3 Comments »

 

JT, I love you. Forever and EVER. Nothing makes my inability to go out for a run more upsetting than finding a gem like this. I could run to this sound on repeat for a long time. The version on my phone is eight minutes long, so I could listen to it on repeat like three times and feel like I got in a good workout. Right now I don’t think I could run for three minutes, which is sad. I thought I was doing better, I was really convinced of it. I went to one yoga class, and I really was okay, and my arms and shoulders and back were just as sore as my foot, and I was encouraged. Then a week later I went to a second yoga class, and during that class I felt AWESOME. I felt like I could do this yoga class every day and feel great. But that was Tuesday, and since then my foot has been a lot more painful than it was before. But I also haven’t been quite as careful with it, and I haven’t been taking the anti-inflammatory medication like I was before. I think I’m going to wear the boot for a couple of days and see if that helps at all, and take the medicine again.

Briscoe just got out of bed, I got up at 8, but she felt the need to sleep until after 10. I think she has already fallen asleep again on the floor.

I went to the Good Friday service last night, because Easter really snuck up on me and I felt like it would help me get into the Easter spirit. The service was REALLY long, but other than that, it was great. There was one passage that I really liked:

Hebrews 10:22-25

“Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful. And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you the Day approaching.”

Obviously this is a pretty sincere affirmation of God’s promise for his people, but I think that even if you don’t believe in God or Jesus, the idea that we should “provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet…but encouraging one another” is an inspirational aspiration. My own personal history with Church could be compared to an interstate slowly changing into a gravel road, but I’ve been a peace with that for a long time. We all take our own paths, but I believe that as long as you are searching for enlightenment and approaching the world with love and gratitude, the day to day theological problems will sort themselves out. And maybe I don’t go to church all the time, and maybe you never do, but the comfort of the ritual is there.

In other news, I just finished the book Gone Girl, and I thought the ending was really stupid. I had been warned that the book was questionable, and I went into it knowing it was questionable, but whatever. I am proud of myself for checking the book out from the library. I live directly behind the library, and I always say I’m going to check out books, and then I never ever do. And this time I did. And I was justified, because now that I’m done with the book I want to throw it across the room, but tossing it into the return box will have to suffice. My horoscope swore to me that this most recent full moon was going to be the most difficult full moon of 2013 for me, and that I was going to get some bad news that would leave me tense and possibly very angry between March 27th and March 30th. Since I had Miami wining the NCAA tournament and they lost to some stupid school that starts with an M by more than ten points, thereby ruining my previously beautifully unbroken bracket, I’ve decided that this was my bad news. But I’m also going to attempt a spray tan today, so if this goes extremely poorly, that could also be my bad news. It is amazing how much I care about my bracket, considering that I have yet to watch an entire (or even a large majority) basketball game this season.

I have so many things I need to do today, starting with taking my dog outside. I’ve already brushed my teeth and consumed a great deal of coffee. Oh! And I got dressed. Now I just need to put on some sunscreen (no one should ever leave the house without sunscreen, on any day, regardless of where or what you are doing. Pouring down rain is a maybe excuse, but it might clear up, you never know) and I will be ready to brave the world! After I take a zyrtec. I really want a shark mop. I think today is the day to investigate. Life is full of excitement and possibilities.

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Oysters and Overload

Posted in Charleston, Difficulties, Working Out on February 3, 2013| 1 Comment »

Charleston can be something of a revolving door of visitors.  You’d expect this in the summertime, but it is amazing how many different people have been here in January.  I love visitors, but in January, the activities available in Charleston basically involve wandering around downtown eating and drinking all day and night.  And, I’ve hurt myself.  I was deathly afraid I had a stress fracture, because the pain started back in October, and then got better, and then got worse at the end of November, but I ignored it, and ran in a 5k, and then finished my last two tennis matches of the season, because it wasn’t so bad I couldn’t do those things, and I wanted to do them.  I figured that if I didn’t run or play tennis over Christmas that by mid January my foot would be better.  I probably should have been smarter about walking around in heels and going to yoga, but I wasn’t, and it didn’t get better.  I finally went to the ortho last Friday, and I have posterior tibia tendinitis, but thankfully, nothing was broken.  They put me in a walking air cast boot that goes all the way up to my knee, and I’m suppose to wear it for 4-6 weeks.  Even though this sucks, the fact I don’t have to have a real cast or use crutches, is so awesome, that I really don’t care.  I just want my foot to get better so I can go back to doing the things I want to do.  I HATE being hurt.  Although, I guess it is a good time of year to have a boot.  If you have to have one.  Maybe I will start swimming again, even if swimming makes me feel like I’m going to drown.  Hopefully I will be able to go back to yoga soon.

I saw a real bluebird on Thursday.  He was a soft sky blue and had a rust colored chest.  I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a for real blue bird before.  It was exciting.  I’ve also eaten a ton of oysters in the past week.  Oyster roasts are tons of fun.  I recommend this activity as a cure for any winter blues.

Briscoe is super bored by my inability to walk any significant distance.  She is super dirty, and desperately needs a hair cut.  She looks like a car wash towel, after you washed the car.

Happy Super Bowl!  I can’t decide who I want to cheer for, but the Super Bowl is always fun.

 

 

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Alligators and Air Squats

Posted in Charleston, Health, Tennis, Working Out on March 4, 2011| 2 Comments »

I’ve had to hide the gummi hearts in the corner of my office.  I can’t put them in a drawer because they make the entire drawer smell like gummi hearts (which is a sickeningly sweet overpowering aroma), and I can’t keep them on my desk because then I’ll eat them, and I can’t eat them all because then I’ll be sick.  I’m only allowed to eat four at a time.  Life is so hard. 

Monday, after having been enticed by a bribe of sorts by my insurance company, I took a health assessment.  The main problem the health assessment had with me is that I’m only suppose to have one alcoholic beverage a day and that I don’t eat the right kind of food.  Since I’ve been making an effort to eat more colorful foods and less white bread, I decided to step it up a notch and buy some assorted products to assist me in my goal of eating all the food groups in the recommended amounts.  I bought yogurt.  I bought carrots.  I bought uncrustables with wheat bread instead of white bread.  I baked some chicken in this fabulous olive oil Mary Beth gave me for my birthday that probably deserves its own post (it is chipotle flavored, and the flavor comes in as a spicy biting aftertaste that is quite enjoyable)

My main concern, is how do you eat all of the things they want you to eat and not consume bazillions of calories?  I just can’t figure out how to eat the fiber one bar, the banana, orange juice and yogurt for breakfast without feeling a little stuffed.  I recognize the fact that I could get rid of the harris teeter chocolate chip cookies and the gummi hearts, but then I’m not sure life would be worth living.  Maybe I’m being dramatic, but it seems like if you ate all the suggested servings in a day that you might be overeating. 

There is a hawk and a crow who fly around my window at work.  I have been trying to come up with good names for them, but i’m not there yet.  I’ll let y’all know once I can decide on something appropriate.  A while back I also saw a little baby redheaded woodpecker, but he hasn’t returned.  He was probably just a tourist.    The crow was sitting outside my window today puffing up his feathers and CAWing his head off.  I sort of thought he might be flirting with me. 

Saturday morning I went to Crossfit with Brooke.  It was an enjoyable experience and I couldn’t walk for three days, so I would say it was also a successful experience.  I did a bunch of pushups and situps and air squats.  I’m still considering whether or not I want to join, I like the idea, and I enjoyed the atmosphere, but it is expensive, and now that the weather is warming up, it is difficult to imagine being inside a gym on a regular basis.  We’ll see.  I ran the bridge on Sunday, and just being outside with the wind blowing and the sun beating down does something good for my soul that I’m not sure the inside of a gym ever could.  I wish I had more time to work out. 

I played tennis last night, and even though I lost, it was a good match and I felt like I got a good workout in.  It somewhat restored my faith that I do actually enjoy playing tennis in general.  I don’t enjoy playing tennis in the cold, and I dislike that USTA plays a third set here in Charleston instead of a tie breaker.  Third sets make me tired.  Which probably means I’m lazy.  Last night we played on clay courts and the wind was gusting at 30 mph, so you really had no idea what the ball was going to do when it bounced or where it would land.  Clay courts slow the game down significantly.  Also, as a side note of irritation, when you are playing tennis, the term love is only appropriate for zero during a game.  15-Love.  When you are calling out the score of the match, if one player has won two games, and the other player has won zero games – the correct score is 2-0.  Not 2-love.  2-Love is an inappropriate use of the word love and incorrect when calling out the games won or lost so far in the set. 

I think I’ve pretty much decided I’d rather play tennis than go to crossfit.  This feels like a reasonable decision, especially in light of the fact that the weather will only warm up from here! (besides whatever short lived deep freeze we experience in the next month)

I liked this week’s collections of grammar corrections in the New York Times.  Everyone has their own grammar missteps, I have an extremely difficult time with “affect” and “effect”.  I have a sticky on my computer that helps me.  It says – Affect – to influence; Effect – result, to bring about.

I’m reading the book Swamplandia! – which is all about the Everglades and Florida, and alligators and theme parks.  It has inspired me to do a little research on the flora and fauna of the swamp, the indians, and the history of Florida in general, all things of which I assumed I had a working knowledge, but was actually ignorant.  This book also has a great story behind it, that is somewhat fantastical and raw all at the same time.  The beginning is a little depressing, and I’m not convinced anyone who lives in the swamp ever takes a shower or washes clothes, but the story definitely picks up and the characters are round and sympathetic and endearing.

I’m happy today is Friday, and I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

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Detox and Daylight Savings

Posted in Charleston, Working Out on November 9, 2010| 1 Comment »

Travers and Natalie’s wedding was this past weekend, and let me go ahead and say that it was one of the most fun weekends ever.  I knew it was going to fun, but I don’t think I realized HOW much fun it was going to be.  Friday night was a blast, and Saturday night went by in the blink of an eye.  When someone told me that they were leaving the reception, I couldn’t believe it.  I thought it was about 8:30, and it was actually 11.  Things quickly got out of hand at the Partridge Inn, and one of my last intelligent thoughts of the night was that I probably should have eaten something at the reception and that tomorrow wasn’t going to be awesome.

Sunday wasn’t quite as fun and definitely did not go by as fast.  So I decided that I needed to go through some detox  and rest this week.  The best part about detox this week is that alcohol hasn’t appealed to me in the least bit, and with daylight savings, going to sleep at 9:30 has seemed completely normal.

Then this afternoon I decided to take it to the next level.  I went to hot power vinyasa yoga.  Mary Righton and Suz and the rest of the Brown family gave me a month of free yoga for my birthday, but I’ve been working so late the past few weeks I haven’t been able to go.  I knew I was going to struggle, since I am woefully out of shape and I haven’t done yoga since I lived in Athens, but I figured it would be a good way to kick start my new commitment to healthy living.

I did better than I expected, and enjoyed it more than I anticipated.  I did have to step outside of the hot room about mid way through because I was seeing stars and I’m pretty sure I was hyperventilating, but I went back in and I finished!  I thought about barfing on the way home, but after some gatorade and some puppy love from the Briscoe Dog, I’m feeling much better.

I feel sure I won’t be able to walk tomorrow, or the next day, but I want to go back next week.  The idea of alcohol is still making me feel ill, but I did manage to eat dinner.

Charleston has better radio stations than Augusta.  Speaking of music, I found a cd case of old mixed CDs from college while unpacking all my stuff.  I put them in my car, because, who knew, I don’t actually have any other cd player in my life anymore.  LUCKILY, the silver bullet has a six disc changer, because that was a super rad cutting edge car accessory in 1997.

I remember a lot of these songs, and some of the songs were classics that I still love.  But I was left with the overall impression that some of the music I listened to in college was AWFUL, and that I obviously took advantage of a lot of free downloading of poor quality bad music back before the government figured out how to stop file sharing.

I can’t wait to get in the bed tonight.  I’m going to sleep like a professional sleeper in my awesome bed with clean sheets and the greatest pillows ever.  Sweet Dreams!

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Novel Ways to Feel Like You’ve Been Beat Up

Posted in Difficulties, Working Out on February 27, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Y’all, I am so sore.  Sore like wow.  This is the seventh day in a row I’ve been sore.  And I haven’t been working out at all.  Which is probably why I’m so sore.  If I worked out more on a regular basis, I probably wouldn’t be so freaking sore. 

Last week I met Libby and Bryan in Steamboat to visit Zack and to ski.  Andrea came up from Denver for the weekend, and we had a grand old time.  Friday night, Lulu cooked dinner for us, and Andrea brought a case of wine, and a shot ski, we had a dance party, and it snowed like crazy, we went to see Miss the Boat, and  stayed up entirely too late.  It was an extremely fun night.  I would show you the pictures, but then I’d have to kill you.  It was so fun, it almost killed the rest of us on Saturday.  Luckily the snow was dumping and the visibility on the mountain was really poor, and it was the best day for us to ski a half day.  We had fun, but the next two days were much better ski days in general.  But even skiing a half day left me sore on Sunday.  After skiing we went to Slopeside where we destroyed the best nachos in America and drank sunshine beer.  It was marvelous. 

Saturday night we went to the Johnny Cash cover band, which was really interesting.  The guy sounded just like Johnny Cash, and he told these bizarre stories like he really was Johnny Cash.  I’d never realized just HOW MUCH all of Johnny Cash’s songs seem to run together, but three hours of the Johnny Cash cover band made that very clear to me.  We had a great group of people, and we ran into Jarrett, who took us to Mazzola’s for late night meatball sliders.  They were DELICIOUS!  So good. 

Sunday was an awesome day of skiing, we got in a few more hours with Andrea before she had to drive back to Denver.  Sunday night we watched the hockey game, when USA beat Canada – and Zack and Rich tried to teach me all the rules of Hockey, of which I was previously sadly ignorant.  Libby knows a lot more about hockey than I do.   

Monday we got up early and hit the slopes.  Rich was nice enough to be my personal ski instructor, and helped scrap me off the side of the mountain when I face planted into the snow going 90 miles an hour.  Which might have added to why I feel like I’ve been beat up.  I actually busted bad enough that ski lift ticket was ripped off.  Haha.  I’ve never had that happened before.  Rich was convinced that I’d destroyed my knee in the fall, but I survived. 

After skiing we went to the hot springs (steamboat springs!) and soaked our muscles and played in the fog while our wet hair froze to our heads.  We laughed at the lifeguard wearing boots and a parka and wondered how long it would take him to strip off all his outer layers and shoes to save someone if they were drowning. 

Tuesday was a long day of travel back to the east coast, with a layover in Minneapolis, a screaming child on all flights and a disastrous marta experience.   I was sore from skiing until probably Thursday. 

Friday afternoon was set up day for the Junior League Attic Sale.  I moved a lot of plywood and I have to say my shoulders and back can feel it today.  This morning we were at the fairgrounds early for Move In Day – and after hours and hours of moving boxes and furniture and toys and trash – we are all moved into the fair grounds!  Now comes the fun part of making the fair grounds look pretty for Sale Day, which is next Saturday.  I’m the facilities coordinator, which means I’m in charge of the trash and the beer and the golf carts and the security guards.  It is really fun. 

Oh, and now I’m so sore.  I think I’m coming down with a terrible cold, although I can’t tell if I’m sore from all the unorthodox weight lifting and cardio I’ve been performing or if maybe I’m coming down with the flu. 

But instead of sitting on the couch and worrying about it, I’m going over to Matt and Jenna’s to cook out and sit by the fire.  Sitting by the fire is going to soothe my weary bones.  Right? 

Oh yeah, Briscoe says hi.  She wants to know who wants to come over and brush out the tangles in her hair because her owner is neglectful and if she had a phone she would call the humane society.  But her evil owner won’t let her have a cell phone because she doesn’t have any thumbs.

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Dehydration is the enemy

Posted in Work, Working Out on June 9, 2009| Leave a Comment »

We had a trial yesterday.  Trials don’t happen very often in my line of the law, and so when they do it is a big deal.  We worked all last week and all Sunday afternoon to be prepared.  I was at the courthouse at 8:15 to get someone to show me the multimedia.  Trial was suppose to start at 10 but didn’t start till around 11 because the judge was trying to clear his criminal calendar, which meant all the ADAs and PDs and lots of attorneys were at the courthouse, which is always fun and made me miss being in court. 

We picked a jury, went to lunch, argued a motion and won, and started the case.  All the sudden it was 4 pm.  The Plaintiff’s attorney was still on his first witness.  Then inadmissible evidence was introduced, the jury was quickly ushered out and the judge declared a mis-trial.  AGGGHH.  I find this intensely frustrating.  Regardless, I was back at my office around 5, and left from there to go to a happy hour for our paralegal’s birthday.  I had a glass of wine and a beer over the course of about two hours.  I got home around 8 and decided to go for a jog.  It was really pretty and I felt like it was starting to cool off (it was only 89 degrees with 100% humidity). 

I ran about three miles, with some good hills, and ended my run right at the house, put briscoe on a leash and walked her for about a mile.  At happy hour I munched on a couple of snacks, and when I finally finished working out in the heat I was anything but hungry.  It was getting late, I took a shower and watched tv and ate a bowl of cereal for dinner.  I didn’t sleep well. 

This morning I ate a Z bar and drank coffee.  When I got to the office I realized I’d left my water bottle at home (nerds!) which was fatal mistake number 2 (number 1 was going for a 4 mile workout after drinking wine and eating potato skins). 

Fatal mistake number 3 occurred at lunch.  We went to picadilly cafeteria.  I don’t like this place, but my partners do, and I’ve gotten to the point where I always get the baked chicken and mac and cheese and green beans and I’m safe.  Well today, I didn’t feel like chicken.  I was HUNGRY!  And I got the chicken pot pie. 

I should have known this was a poor choice because it was sort of creamy and rich looking and I haven’t been tolerating rich food well as of late.  But I wasn’t thinking. 

So after lunch, things went from bad to worse.  I started to cramp and sweat and shake.  Even my toes were cramping.  I had to come home around 2 and lay on the cool bathroom tile.  I never actually got sick, even though I would have given anything to have just thrown up and felt better. 

I’ve been trying to choke down gatorade and ginger ale all afternoon.  I’ve been eating saltines.  I keep thinking I feel better so I get up to do something and I just feel weak as water.  I must feel better tomorrow.  I must. 

We’ve had a very mild summer so far and it was much hotter yesterday than it has been.   I’m not in excellent shape.  I haven’t been working out enough to go out and run in the heat like that, especially not after drinking wine.  I know better.

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