Too Much 48 Hours

I’ve admitted that I look for red flags with guys that might make me the subject of my own episode.  I can see it now, she was a young woman who had a lot of promise.  And then the “but” would come in, but she used an online dating site.

So here’s the thing, I’m big on going with my gut.  Opting to meet guys out at public places.  Being reluctant to exchange numbers.  Being vague when they ask where I live.  I got a tip from a guy who was writing a book on dating online, he said never let a guy see your license plate.  He told me that some guys have access to run license plates, hence they have your personal information, including your address.  I had never thought about that one.

I was out-of-town with my mom and we were walking down the hallway of the hotel.  I jokingly said, let’s be careful, tons of people get killed in hotels.  Normally, my mom would suggest I was being overly negative.  Her response, “I know.”

I think I’ve gotten to be a bit extreme.  The key is realizing that without putting myself in crazy situations that will result in me being assaulted or killed.  I will not become the woman who thinks every man is a potential rapist/murderer.  I will not be the holed in my house with cats, scared of the world.  I’ll never be holed up with cats because I despise them.  I don’t brake for cats that run out in the road.  I’m serious.

Everyone isn’t  a rapist/murderer but there does seem to be a few unstable guys out there…and I’m sure there are unstable women out there as well.

Hoping for the Best, Preparing for Nothing (Hurricanes)

My state is preparing for Hurricane Ilene.  I hate the name.  But that’s beyond the point.  I live two hours from the beach but based on past experiences, that doesn’t mean my city won’t be affected.  When I was undergrad, I was positive that Hurricane Fran would hit my college town (as we were right on the water).  I packed a bag and laid out clothes (in preparation for a late-night evacuation).  In the middle of the night, I heard security over the intercom say something that amounted to “move”.  I woke up my roommate, put on my clothes, grabbed my bag and headed downstairs.  The security guards looked confused.  I asked what the evacuation process entailed.  They explained, we weren’t evacuating, they were asking students to move their cars from a certain lot to higher ground as it would probably flood.

 A few days later, I found that my parents had the brunt of the hurricane.  There was extensive damage all over.  No power for a week.  People hadn’t prepared and price gouging was in full-effect.  My dad was really good-natured about the whole thing. He said that there was damage to the roof and his truck but it’d all be covered by insurance.  He lamented, the good thing was, it was time to replace the roof anyway!

Years ago, I was going to Myrtle Beach for birthday.  My friend flew down from Philly and we drove down.  We were undecided about dinner, so we stopped any several restaurants on Kings Highway.  At one point, we left a buffet and this car noticed I had NC tags, they asked if we were staying in-town.  I said yes, they fell out laughing and speed off.  Sign #1.

 We went to K&W Cafteria.  As we paid for our bills, the older cashiers, told us to be very careful.  We probably looked to damn carefree.  Sign #2.

 On the way back to the resort, the highway was lined with Sheriff’s Deputies in the medians. Sign #3

 I decide that we should stop at the grocery store.  As I pull up, they’re placing the metal things on the windows to protect against the storm. Sign #4

 At this point, I’m panicked.  I’ve grabbed a cart, I’m literally running through the aisles, grabbing things and throwing them in the cart.  I’m yelling at my friend to keep up.  I hear on the radio that after a certain time, probably 8 p.m., all the highways will be going Westbound.  I return, to the resort, I ask if there is a mandatory evacuation will they inform us.  The lady smiles and tells me yes.  I wake up the next morning to find out (via the news) that there was a mandatory evacuation in the middle of the night.  No, we weren’t called.

 The morning is lots of rain and wind.  I talk to my mom and tell her that we’re okay, the hurricane has already come through.  She corrects me, it hasn’t.  Oh.  The power goes out and my friend sleeps through it all.  I, who drug us in the this craziness, I’m awake through the whole thing.  Going crazy, feeling guilt.  When I saw crazy, I mean petrified hoping that we come out alive. I almost ate myself through a damn bag of bagels. 

 There was property damage but no casualties.  By the way, this hurricane hit on my birthday.  Happy Birthday Idiot!!!

Holding Onto Random Items

It’s time for me to replace my running shoes, well past time.  A certain store has a trade-in policy (for limited periods of time). You bring in a pair of used running shoes and you can get a discount towards your purchase.  

Before I turned in my shoes, I took the shoelaces out and replaced them with some from a random pair I still have.  Why did I switch out the laces?  I ran a 5K in June and fell.  I didn’t notice a pothole and totally tripped.  I tried to recover and prevent the fall, just when I thought I had, I realized that I was going down!

It wasn’t a bad fall, no scrapes, I broke my fall and got up and ran even harder.  Shout out to the two guys who made sure I was okay despite the fact we were in the midst of a competitive race!  I improved my time and I loved my attitude.  I loved that I was like okay, that happened but instead of running at the same pace, we’re going to step it up.  I improved my time.

The next day when I was lacing up, I realized that my left shoelace (brunt of the fall) was shredded in a few places.  I want to hold onto the shoelace just because I liked my approach to the temporary setback.

It also reminds me of my dad.  He battled cancer for years, prior to that he was dealing with congestive heart failure.  I remember getting in a minor car accident out-of-town during Spring Break.  I was at fault and I remember after the police came, talking to my dad.  I was naturally upset, he asked if I was okay.  I told him yes.  Next, he asked about the other driver, I said he was fine.  My dad said from his perspective, we shouldn’t worry about it anymore.

I remember telling someone else a few months later.  She said that her dad would have been yelling about the damage to the car.  I told her that when you’re dealing with issues of life and death, you’re not going to waste energy on stuff like that. 

My dad was a warrior through it all and I felt like for that moment in that race, I was embracing his positive energy when unexpected things happen…

Desperately Seeking An Adventure Partner

I’m used to doing things by myself.  But certain things seem like it would be better if I was doing it with someone else.    I enjoyed SUP (stand up paddleboarding) and enjoyed the group I was in.  But it was a 3.5 hour drive each way.  I feel like the next time could be even more exciting if I had a partner in crime.

Being selfish, I want to go again on my birthday week.  I thought I had someone locked down but she has to go to AIDS conference.  The other person, the same person who I told my mom I went with the last time and went with me to Miami, can’t go because she’s on-call.  She has to prep organs for transplant.  At least I’m friends with do-gooders despite the lies I tell my mom to make her worry less (since I’m off gallivanting God knows where).

So, I’m at a loss.  I can’t find a soul that who would do it, who can go.  I have another friend but she’s only been swimming a few years.  If she’d been swimming forever, I’d probably feel inclined to ask.

I’m undecided.  Going by myself on my birthday weekend just sounds downright lonely.

Thank Goodness for Using My Glove Compartment Being a Filing System

I get off my flight.  Get my bags pretty quick.  I head to the parking garage.  On the way to baggage claim, I’ve refreshed my memory of where I parked my car.  I’ve called my mom to tell her I’ve landed.

I see my car.  I say aloud but quietly, Hey car!  I unlock the car and think let’s crank the baby up and get the AC going.  It was 10o degrees.  My car makes  a weird clicking noise.  I think, I’ve imagined it.  I try again.  Same result.

I put my luggage in the car.  And despite being a grown woman, I call my mom.  In an attempt to use her AAA card.  Sad, I know.  Well, they thwart my attempts and tell me I need my own card.  My mom purchases it for me.  Don’t think less of me, I’ve already paid her back in cash.  I’m not that kind of kid.  I’ll just leach of your benefits if it won’t cost you anything.

Oh yeah, my mom asks me where my friend was.  The one who was travelling with me.  I almost always travel alone, so I usually forget to say we.  And under normal circumstances, the other party would have probably hung around while the issue was resolved, right?  I lie (as always) and say she had already made her way out of the garage before I realized what was going on.  The lies just pile on!!!

So with my new account, I’m told it’ll take an hour and half.  Didn’t take that long.  He calls, and by the time I make it back to the car, he pulls up.  You didn’t think I’d hang out in that hot garage all that time, right?  He says it’s the battery.  He tells me I can purchase one from him for $122.  I say yes and then think that price is ridiculous.  I tell him I’m going to the dealership.  He tells me that they’ll charge me $200.  It’s okay, I see this seemingly nice guy is playing me for stupid.  I don’t let on and lie and say I have a gift card.  He looks at me quizzically.  I say I got it when they did the recall.  They really did pass those out but I’ve used that on a maintenance visit.

Before I pull off, I call Toyota and confirm that they have a battery.  Get the price. $89 plus $10-20 for installation.  I get the battery, pay for it.  Then I recall the technician telling me the warranty is for 5 years.  I’m unsure of when I purchased the last battery.  I check my glove compartment for the record.  Naturally, the newest documents are on top.  I got my last battery in November 2010.  Crazy, right?

I guess that explains why I was convinced it wasn’t the battery.  But when they said it was the battery, I convinced myself it had to be older than it was.  I’m just glad I got my money back minus the installation.

To be honest, I think I left the overhead dome on when I got out the car last.  For a week.  But I’m not sure, I noticed that the one on the left-hand side was one when I got in the car. 

Regardless, Toyota doesn’t need to know all that…

Returning From A Vacation

It’s never easy.  The night before, I feel myself overwhelmed with sadness.  It’s not that I hate my  life at home.  It’s just that it’s so nice to be away from work and other the monotonous details of life.

I stayed in Miami for a week.  Should I be complaining that I have to return home after being gone for a week?  Absolutely not. 

In preparation of returning to my life, I involuntary thrust myself into the anxiety I usually try to avoid in my daily life.  My immediate concerns last night.  Making sure I packed the few random items in my car: straw hat, sarong and tennis shoes (actually ended up wearing them).  Getting to the airport on time.  Despite the Miami airport being next door, I flew into Fort Lauderdale’s.  I’m serious about the proximity of the Miami airport.  They literally could probably see me turning in bed wondering when the last flight was arriving or departing.

I flew into Fort Lauderdale because, it just seems that it would be cheaper.  Not to mention, I love flying Southwest.  As I told her girlfriend a few months back, “I became their bitch with 2 free bags.”  I’m dead serious.  I dread going to destinations where Southwest doesn’t don’t fly.  My anxiety stems from the fact that Fort Lauderdale is about 20 or 30 miles from Miami.  On a bad day, that can take an hour.  I scheduled to return my rental car at 9:30 and I was paranoid about rush hour.  I got out early and didn’t hit any ridiculous traffic.

So Miami is the opposite of the rest of the world.  Despite 8:00 a.m. being a rush hour for most cities, they just barely getting it cranking.  Go somewhere around 10:00 a.m., you’ll be sitting somewhere stuck in traffic.  Granted, it could be other tourists, I just don’t think so. 

My other concerns, finding a gas station to top off my tank.  Finding a McDonald’s to get an Egg McMuffin (hold the Canadian bacon, please.)  Found the gas, no Egg McMuffin.  I settled for 2 glazed donuts at Dunkin Donuts. I’m underwhelmed and the other options where pretty crappy.  I didn’t expect much from an airport that doesn’t have the scanner where they can see the outline of your private parts. 

It’s all good.  I’ll return.  I was smart and typed my parking aisle in my phone.  So it shouldn’t take me 45 minutes to find my car. 

Until the next vacation, which will be a weekend with my mom in either Myrtle Beach (yuck), Charleston (gorgeous but very entrenched in its roots in slavery), New Orleans (my mom doesn’t want to fly) and Orlando (I don’t like any of the attractions there, so I’ll pass)…

Doesn’t sound like we’re going anywhere, right???

Gearing Up For My First 10K

I think I’m ready.  I was going to do one in April and weeks before, my body betrayed me.  I ended up going to a couple of doctors and ended up with a spinoff diagnosis.  It’s been an issue ever since.  Limiting my runs to 3 miles, and then I was able to increase to 4 miles. 

My nutritionist and I often talk about running.  She’s aware of my ups and downs, injuries and the new diagnosis.  She suggested months ago that I switch to morning runs.  That was a totally foreign concept considering that I’m a night owl and have a really hard time getting up.

One Sunday morning, I managed to knock out a 5 mile run.  I loved the feeling of accomplishment, so I decided to try morning runs.  They’ve been great.  I gain time back in my evenings.  On the flip side, there are some mornings where I can’t get up.  So I end up running real late in the evening, like 7:30 p.m.  My diagnosis, requires a lot of time pass between when I eat and when I run…

My night owl days are over, seeing as that my body starts to shut down around 9:30. 

With being able to do a 5 mile run now, a 10K seems like a real possibility again.  It’s just a matter of adding on 1.2 miles, right?  Well, I always likes to be able to run close to more than a mile more than the specified distance of the race.  When I’m in the actual race, I tell myself, you run more this distance, so you have this under control!

Yes, I do a lot of talking to myself when I run.  Even on daily runs.

The race I’m thinking of is August 20, wish me luck!!!