Tuesday, October 17, 2017

Alive, floundering

It's been a mix of the good, the bad, and the ugly these past few weeks. I'm beyond tired, but this week looks to offer a lot more balance. I can't say it will be restful, exactly, but better. There will be light at the end of the tunnel soon, I just need to survive a few more weeks.

The good:
  • Fall is here! It's the start of my two favorite seasons of the year. Not only does the weather cool down a bit, but the holiday festivities begin.  
  • We just finished our house painting...so our house looks better than it has in years. We have a small section left to do ourselves, but we're thrilled to have the 'hard part' over with it without breaking a sweat (or bone). ;-)
  • I worked Ironman last weekend with a crew of friends from 6:30am until 11:00pm, and we survived! It's never an easy gig in the heat, and with the water shortage and crazy athletes we encountered. But I was with a fun group and a great company...so the time passed quickly, and it wasn't nearly as hot as it could have been! 
  • I also hit up the Ironman Village one day and got uber lucky at the Zoot booth. I scored some lovely tops/run shorts for 1/3 of their regular price! 
  • Rich and I got to go to a fun BBQ put on by the Clif team last week...with the most insane food. Apparently, Clif owns a winery now...and flew out their chef from the winery to cater the event. I was in heaven! Vegetarian, healthy...but also...delicious! A rarely achieved combination in our household thanks to our crappy chef. ;-)
  • Ryan got rewarded last week with a chance to ride his horse interest group teacher's horses at her private polo field. He loved it!
  • Our friends from NZ are in town, and we've been able to get little snatches of quality time with them between the chaos.
  • We found the coolest wagon and slide for our nieces over the course of a week, which I am sure they will love!
  • We celebrated two family birthdays in a week- my mom and Riki!
  • Rich had another great turnout all weekend for his play's second week, so the cast/crew are happy.
  • I was able to renegotiate three rental contracts for one of many jobs (one for us, two for a family member). It's a small victory with no immediate pay off...but it's still a tally for the win column.
  • I was able to successfully get through the 18-miler the week before last. I'm a little nervous to attempt this week's 20-miler, but also excited! Especially after watching the brave, strong souls of IM trudging through their marathon at 10pm after being in motion from 6:30 that same morning. 
 The bad/ugly:
  • I subbed two days each week the last two weeks of school...it can be exhausting. I shouldn't list this as a bad, as it's precious income, but...it's also not easy.
  • I got my final check and retirement paperwork this past week...a reminder of a job that abruptly ended after thirteen years.
  • Our tiling installation got pushed back a week, so we're not done yet. We started in mid-July, and will be lucky to finish before November. ;-) 
  • I missed a record number of workouts last week due to working more, having visitors in town, working Ironman/getting severely dehydrated, etc. I even missed my first long run. I know that I can absorb that into my program, but I can't keep letting this happen. My workouts need to be as much of a priority as Rich's rehearsals/performances. It's not right that I'm always sort of last place...so I'm hoping this week I can turn things around.
  • The pre-treatment of the house painting (which required the use of bleach) killed off all my basil. It's like a basil apocalypse in my planter boxes. Sad to see. They're just plants, but they also represent months of nurturing down the drain.
The last two weeks in pictures:

The reward for learning about/caring for horses in his interest group at school was getting to ride one! It's been awhile since he's been on horseback, so I was very happy for him. He's always loved horseback riding, but I could tell on the first day of the session that he was pretty nervous standing right next to one (he was convinced he'd be trampled). By the end of the session, he seemed totally comfortable about them. Success!

Ryan's sister from another mister...they have a silly friendship I am so grateful for. After a skate night got rained out, we were able to rally with some hot ramen and a trip to Petco.
The mister onstage in Arsenic & Old Lace (as Jonathan Brewster) with his amazing friend Kerry, who we all refer to as my 'sister wife' since she helps him fulfill all of comedic/theatrical needs (that I try my best to hide from). It just works!


The fun crew
The new wagon! (It's not always easy to find fun stuff on an island.)
The surprise dinner for my mom's birthday, planned by my dad/SIL.

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