It's a ______ Life

Five alarms. That is how many I set this morning. No matter how many alarms I set, I always seem to sleep through them. One day I am going to pay someone to come to my house and wake me up every morning. Seriously, how does someone sleep through five alarms?! Especially since I took the weekend off of work and had the opportunity to sleep in, yet still woke up naturally at 5AM both Saturday and Sunday. One day, my body will learn to not sleep... ever. I will run off of caffeine and avocados. It's a delicious life.
Last night, I sat browsing through all of the beautiful things in the Pottery Barn catalog. Oh, to be wealthy and be able to decorate my home beautifully. If only, if only, the woodpecker sighed. Is it the woodpecker who sighs? I can't remember, but that sounds about right. I love my home, I really do. My paintings and photographs of my friends and family grace the walls. There is a couch against the wall that brings back the memories of driving to a gorgeous home in the foothills with Jonah. We shimmied the couch into the back of my Subaru and held onto the wooden armrest as we drove it down the back roads to my home. Once we got it home, we realized maneuvering it through my tight entryway and up the stairs was not going to be an easy task. The second Dana and I sat on it to watch an episode of Greek or Prison Break or whatever show we were watching at the time, we knew we had chosen a good couch. These are things that can stay in my home, but how nice would it be to get a sturdy coffee table, a stunning lamp and a mahogany entertainment center? It's a penniless life.
So, if I am so poor, should I be looking for a steady job? One where I don't have to spend half of my day commuting from one place to the next? Yeah, probably. But I love what I do. I don't want to get stuck in a job where I don't look forward to going into work every day. This has been a cause of stress in my life since my dad came to visit. I was perfectly happy living in the moment, then Daddy reminded me that I'm turning 25 soon and I need to think about health insurance, benefits, a husband, children... all of these things that no one seems to worry about anymore, yet we know that it's on everyone's mind at one point or another. Shomari took me into his office and forced me to sit down and decide what I want to do with my future. It was good. These conversations help me realize I can't stay stagnant, I must continue to grow. But who do I want to be? The human race is constantly developing and so is each individual. I used to want to be a professional singer, then a fashion designer, next a dentist, then start my own surf magazine, maybe look into physical therapy, teach high school health... now look at me. I have evolved into an athletic trainer, instructor and triathlon coach. It is an evolving life.
Who do I want to be? I want to learn how to rock climb. Indie rock will be theme music: Miike Snow, The Strokes and Muse will be the playlist to my life. I will wear Lulu Lemon only when I'm trying to impress; all other times, my body will be clad in Brooks, North Face and Patagonia gear. Somehow, I will make  I will make a ton of money, or maybe my husband will just be loaded and pay for all of my races. For some reason, I don't think that will happen, so I will get sponsored instead. Okay, let's be realistic: I am going to get a job as a sonogram technician, have kids and get fat and out of shape. It's a wishful life.
Last Thursday, rain covered the ground. It was a beautiful thing. After blogging, I met up with Richard and had him do some hill sprints in the rain; hey, gotta be prepared for any type of weather up on Denali! He was doing really well! I'm excited for him to climb. It's pretty motivating to see a sixty-six-year-old man love working out the way he does. After leaving Richard, I sat in traffic to get to the pool, where I tested for my triathlon swim. It was a beautiful thing. I was holding my goal pace very well. Best part of the swim was I swam a 50m in :39, which is huge for me, a non-swimmer. It's an accomplished life.

Friday was a crazy day. It started with a challenge. I arrived at work and my boss and I completed this month's partner challenge. I didn't warn him that I was wanting to participate, so he didn't have time to warm-up. We shared a machine, so we had to add on transition time plus he had new members to help, so he wasn't always ready to hop on it time. Still, we placed fourth. He believes we could have placed first and I think he may be right. Something to look forward to, right? We will do it again this week. It's an exciting life.

After the workout, I grabbed breakfast with Jason then cleaned my house and took a long walk in the rain. When work ended, I got in my car and drove to Malibu with Sophia. We arrived late, fortunately, our cabin mates were all still awake. Ahhh! Such a great weekend! My church was having a retreat in Malibu and the speaker was phenomenal! I met so many people from my church and learned so much. It was funny to see members from my classes walk up to me in street clothes to say, "Hey! You're my cycle instructor!" On Saturday, after lunch, Sophia joined me for a 2 hour trail run and a 45-minute hike. For the first time in my life, I realized that I am indeed a runner. I think the problem was that I was not a road runner, but I am a trail runner. I love being with God in his natural creation. No music, just the sound of the babbling brook and the birds chirping in the trees. I love speeding up hills and skipping down rocks. It's a thrill! Sophia and I ran fast, we ran slow, we turned, we climbed... I have never felt so alive. At the end of the two hour run, I wasn't even tired in the slightest. I felt like I was in Oregon. Before the run, I had no idea how much I missed Oregon. It's an adventurous life.
 

On Sunday, I met more amazing people, listened to a great sermon then Sophia and I grabbed lunch at Dana's favorite restaurant. The fish was delicious and so filling! We shopped in Santa Monica for a bit then drove to Thousand Oaks to see my dear friend Kristina. Oh, how I have missed that gorgeous girl! It was so fun to catch up and hear about her life. Overall, this weekend reminded me of the importance of community: Community with my church family, with my friends and with others. I have spent so much of the past two months alone. It is hard living and training alone. To be honest, I've been incredibly lonely. I kept thinking it was a good thing because I was spending more time with God, but this weekend I was reminded of God's command and desire for us to be in community with one another. It is so crucial to love thy neighbor and to find support from the people around you and be their for them in their time of need. It's a friendly life.