Not my Chi…..Anticipatory Failure

On March 25, 2015 By DGThomaIn Exercise, Family, Friends, Humor/Light Hearted, Musings, Writing5 Comments

On the journey to recapture my fitness, I am trying to remind myself to draw on my chi. Chi Running, defines chi (pronounced ‘chee’) as the energy that unites body, mind, and spirit. How awesome is that. If only I could learn to tap into that!

A few years ago, when we traveled to in San Francisco, CA for the Nike Women’s Marathon, my running partner and I purchased stones with Chinese symbols engraved on them. We each chose a symbol that had special meaning for us. We often trade them at the beginning of a race as a symbol of support for each other. We call them our chi.

As fun things often do, they took on a life of their own. On our training runs, if someone just a little faster ran past us, we would challenge ourselves and pick up the pace, shouting “It’s our chi!”

If someone sprinted by much faster, we would look at each other and proclaim, “Not my chi!”

Those little engraved stones have become a symbol of support and companionship, but occasionally even they aren’t enough to push me up a hill.

Years ago, someone told me a secret to running hills. You should visualize a rope at the top of the hill and imagine someone is pulling you forward. It’s a great visualization and can help. But it can’t really pull you. You still have to move your legs and when you haven’t trained; well it isn’t as easy to make it up the hill.

Recently, I was out for a run with my two favorite running partners. It was an easy and pleasant run and things were going well. We were at the start of our training plan, so the run was short and not too aggressive. Near the end of the run, we were faced with a hill. The hill is about a 45 degree incline alongside a busy road. When I looked ahead and saw the hill I said, “I’m going to run to the bottom of the hill and then I’ll walk the actual hill.” I was thinking I was already tired and would not have the energy to run up the hill. Both my companions nodded and headed for the hill determined to beat it.

I realized I had allowed anticipatory failure to keep me from making it up the hill. No it’s not ‘rocket science’ but for me it was an eye opener. I actually got it. If you don’t start, you can’t finish is a real thing. I ran the hill, huffing and puffing the entire way, but I didn’t stop until I reached the top. Even if I had taken a break half way it would have been fine. I wasn’t attempting to set a record, just keep moving until my body said stop instead of my head.

I have a half marathon to run in this weekend and haven’t trained as well as I could have, but I never do. I considered switching to the 10k instead. Then I remembered the hill and changed my mind. I may not finish, but I will start and I will listen to my body not the anticipatory failure in my head.

Oh What a Tangled Web We Weave and that can be a good thing!

On March 18, 2015 By DGThomaIn Family, Friends, Humor/Light Hearted, WritingLeave a comment

The sky was dreary and hectic as I attempted to get into the car with my arms full. I shoved my crochet bag into the seat and watched as it tumbled on its side, spilling the contents. While I picked up scattered yarn and shoved everything back into the bag, a nice drizzle began to sprinkle the ground.

As we got under way, I reached for the bag to pull out a skein of yarn and discovered, the yarn I needed was missing! I must have missed it when I picked everything else up.

When we arrived home 12 hours later, I found a rain soaked mass of yarn with the bent needle still attached. We had run over the yarn as we left.

I decided to wash the yarn and see if it could be saved. I found a nylon laundry bag for washing dedicates and dropped the yarn inside. What came out of the dryer …… a tangled mess!

Still hoping I could save the skein, I spread the mass of yarn on the guest bed.

I stared at the tangle of thread and smiled. It reminded me of another web of string I had untangled as a young camp fire girl.

My mother was my Camp Fire leader and a quilter. She had a wooden quilting rack suspended from the ceiling. For a fun activity at one of our meetings she created a web of fun. Twine was looped around the rack and left to hang a few feet off the floor. At the end of each string, she tied a piece of candy or a pack of gum or some other small token. It looked like a multitude of prizes hung from that rack. In reality only 10-15 strands dangled. The strings were then crisscrossed and woven through each other until she had created a web with treats suspended at varying levels across the network of twine.

To my eight year old self, it was a treasure hunt. The idea was to pick a string and work to the prize of choice. It sounds easy now, but with 8-10 girls vying for a position and pulling on strings, it was near impossible to predict which prize dangled from which beginning. I wish I had a picture to show you, but I don’t. There is a lovely picture, but it only exists in my memory. The package of Wrigley’s spearmint gum dangled at the end of my string. At that moment the gum was a treasured prize. This has always been one of my favorite childhood memories. As I sit in the floor and work on my tangle of yarn, my heart is happy.

It took hours and tremendous patience to untangle this mess. I considered stopping and tossing the lot in the recycle bin several times. Now I am glad I persevered!

The untangling is done and I will find something special to create from it. Maybe I will create a new memory that will give someone else a smile.

Nature, miles and friends

On February 25, 2015 By DGThomaIn Exercise, Family, Food, Friends, Writing4 Comments

While much of the country has been dealing with extreme weather, in my area we’ve been more fortunate. Austin, TX residents woke Saturday morning to a mild 64 degrees. It was a perfect day for a long training run. If you have to run long, you may as well run for fun! Bastrop State Park is a short 15 miles from my home. Running in nature while I train is a great distraction.

A fire devastated Bastrop State Park in September 2011 along with many other areas of Bastrop County. The fire destroyed many of the ancient pine trees. It affected 96 percent of the park. The fire was a tragedy, but it has been wonderful watching the rebirth of the park, aided by many volunteer organizations and their members.

Dez, Ron, and myself arrived at the park with two expectations; to complete an 11 mile training run and to enjoy ourselves. We put no constraints on time or speed. Dez and I kept to the trails as much as possible while Ron opted for the park roads.

The trails range from sand, gravel, or packed dirt and is easier on your body than pounding on pavement. The steep inclines and declines work muscles not used in street running and compel careful navigation to prevent falls. The combination is a great workout.

We quickly realized that it was going to be a silly, fun day when we started laughing at everything. We stopped along the way to take pictures, to view the blackened, fallen trees and to enjoy the newly planted baby pines.

Throughout the morning, park guests greeted us and we shared waves and greetings in return. At mile 6 we found a restroom, which had been recently renovated and was sparkling clean. While we were stopped, we visited with Ranger Carpenter and learned a few facts about the park rehabilitation.

We stopped at mile 9.25 to enjoy a bit of solitude at a pond hidden among the trees. I had spent the day in search of the elusive Houston Toad. We were pretty sure we heard one in the distance while we were at the pond.

The park ranger we spoke with encouraged us to find a tree and claim it. He suggested we take our picture with the tree and return annually to document the growth. So we each picked one and began a tradition.

Our final mile tally of 11.5 miles was full of fun. After surviving our trek through nature, we ate lunch and stopped by Austin City Wide Garage Sale. This weekend the sale was being held in Bastop, Texas. After an hour and a half of wandering through the maze of exhibits we were a few dollars poorer and a few items richer, and our energies had been fully expended.

We ended our day with sweets from the Sugar Shack in Bastrop. We each had two scoops of ice cream and I brought home treats for later. It was a lovely day and the best one I’ve had in a while. A special thanks to my cohorts today for helping me make wonderful memories!

Toto we’re not in Austin anymore…..

On February 18, 2015 By DGThomaIn Exercise, Friends, Humor/Light HeartedLeave a comment

I’m still playing catch-up on my training for the Zooma half marathon. I am slowly building up both time and distance as the date moves closer. Tonight we ran through downtown Austin.

We started at the Treaty Oak on Baylor and ran down 6^th street toward the interstate. At the interstate we looped around and started down 5^th heading to our car. As we ran we wove our way through tourists, 5:00 o’clock workers heading home, valets parking cars, homeless people and early evening patrons heading into one of the many bars that pepper 6^th street.

We discovered a sign for the best hamburger in Austin, one that said they had the best dumplings in Austin and discovered an entirely different town alive with entertainment.

We drive these roads every day, but everything changes when you’re on the ground at 5:00 PM on 6^th street in Austin. We may not be setting any speed or distance records but we did have a lot of fun!

See you on the trails!

You are not traveling alone…

On January 21, 2015 By DGThomaIn Friends, Musings, Travel, WritingLeave a comment

Today will be my 44th post. I began posting weekly in May 2014 and have posted each week since. For those of you who joined me, thank you. I love to read your posts and spend time with you through your writings or photographs.

The past week has been a busy whirlwind of activities, some good and some not so much. I wasn’t able to write this week, so I searched my snippets to see if I might stumble across a ready made post. No luck.

I found a poem of sorts I had written for someone special and the last line was “Please remember each time you look at it, you are not traveling alone”. The line referred to a ring I had given as a gift.

The Culture Monk, a blog I follow, posted today about community. As I read the post I thought about that line. I realized community was exactly what I was describing.

My interpretation of community is an ever changing sea of people and environments. Since December 19th, I traveled from Austin, TX to New York City, NY; back to Austin and immediately on to Tulsa, OK. I returned to Austin for a few days before being called to Wichita Falls, TX where I spent the last week. Now I am back in Austin and am scheduled to be in San Antonio, TX this weekend.

What a profound community I have experienced! One thing I know for certain. I am not traveling alone. During my travels, I was entertained by people, moved by others and exchanged smiles with many.

I received hugs, handshakes and words of encouragement. So I offer to you to “Remember you are never traveling alone”. There is always someone nearby with a smile or a story.

Growing up in a small town…..

On December 17, 2014 By DGThomaIn Friends, Musings, WritingLeave a comment

Growing up in a small town, I knew everyone and everyone knew me. There were approximately 3500 people in our town. As soon as I could, I left in search of excitement and opportunity. I rarely look back with any regret and have enjoyed my life immensely. I have come to value my privacy and enjoy living in a bigger city even though “Nobody knows your Name.”

However, occasionally I am reminded that there are trade-offs. If you stand in the center of my hometown you could walk a mile in any direction and likely be on the edge of town. Getting anywhere is a matter of minutes not hours.

Photo Courtesy of Barclay Gibson Photography

Currently, I commute an hour to an hour and a half to get work each day. I am grateful that my husband and I work in close proximity and are able to ride in one car. That’s great until something happens.

Recently I was working a little late and waiting for my husband to pick me up. He had called to say he would be there in about 10 minutes, so I was surprised when he called back within a couple of minutes. Assuming he was warning me he was stuck in traffic, I grabbed the phone. Nope, he was stuck but not due to traffic. His car was dead in the middle of a fairly heavily trafficked street. We decided to call our roadside service and began to reach out to friends for a ride to pick up my car.

After several phone calls, we determined that it was just too complicated to find someone to pick each of us up and drive an hour to get us to my car and then spend another hour returning back to their homes. We also had to find a way to get to our car and talk to the service department where it had been towed. I have great friends and they would have been willing, but it was too much to ask. Instead, several kind strangers helped push the car off the road and the tow truck dropped my husband near a rental car agency. Half an hour later, he was at my office to pick me up and we were able to head to the dealer.

It reminded me that in my home town, I could have walked to my house to get my car, someone I knew well or was related to would have given me a ride and if someone I barely knew happened by, it would have been safe to accept a ride.

It’s a good reminder that living in a community of any size, you still need to have strong relationships and that commuting is not much fun. I do love my life and wouldn’t change it but maybe I’m a little more grateful for growing up with a wonderfully established community and I remember that sometimes it’s good to go where “Everybody Knows Your Name!”

Rocking the Streets of San Antonio Texas

On December 10, 2014 By DGThomaIn Exercise, Family, Friends, Travel, Writing2 Comments

The Humana Rock and Roll Marathon was the weekend of December 6^th through December 7^th in San Antonio, Texas. This is the 7^th year l have participated in the San Antonio Rock and Roll marathon. I signed up months ago before this became the year of broken bones. In August, I broke my toe and the healing outlasted my patience! Not to be left out, my husband Ron fell and broke his wrist a few weeks ago. And then, just because we are a little insane we signed up for the Remix challenge which means we ran a 10K on Saturday and a half marathon on Sunday.

San Antonio is a beautiful, magical city and one of my favorite places to visit. The expo in the downtown convention center was as entertaining and chaotic as always. I never seem to leave without purchasing something. This time it was new socks and some GU gel blocks. Leaving the expo, we stopped to enjoy the twinkling Christmas lights along the Riverwalk and the Tower of the Americas. It was lovely in the soft evening light.

We didn’t stay in a downtown hotel for this trip, so we had to get up a little earlier to ensure we could find parking. On Saturday, the 10K didn’t start until 9:00 AM and there were only 2500 or so competitors. The parking was easier to find and it turns out it was considerably cheaper. Sunday morning, the official start was 7:30 AM, so we left the comfort of our warm beds a bit early to head back to our parking garage from the previous day. Supply and demand was definitely in play as we had to pay double the fee we had paid on Saturday.

I should clarify that I am not an elite athlete and I enjoy the fun and camaraderie found by those of us crossing the start line 30 minutes after the sprinters in the first corral. When you run slower you can see all sorts of sights along the course.

Sunday morning, we all lined up; the elves, the tutu wearing competitors, the old, the young, and all other 12,000 plus runners, walkers and wheel chair participants. The music was pounding and the weather was just a little chilly.

As expected, I crossed the starting line about 30 minutes after the gun sounded. The course was a bit downhill in the beginning, heading from the Alamodome toward downtown. As we passed the Alamo, many runners, stopped for selfies with the façade and spirits of the Alamo. Leaving downtown took us through Trinity University and hills. The spectators lined the road through Trinity, cheering us up the hills. The enthusiasm was wonderful, but it didn’t really make up for all those hills.

The course in a Rock and Roll marathon is always alive with music and excitement. It is also lined with coaches, family members and complete strangers. Sunday was no exception. Signs along the course proclaimed, “Worst parade ever”; “Run like a Zombie is chasing you” and my favorite, “I’m proud of you complete stranger.”

I think my favorite coach along the course was the gladiator wielding his sword, his face encased in a metal helmet in the parking lot of a Cross fit gym shouting encouragement as we passed. My most memorable athlete was the young man I passed at mile 12, limping to the finish line, carrying his shoes and socks because of blisters on his feet. Dedicated or stubborn I’m not sure but he finished!

At the end, I was so relieved it was over! It was the slowest I’ve ever finished a half marathon, but I felt quite proud to have survived.

We ended our San Antonio trip with a wonderful meal at Canyon Café, a southwestern grill in the Quarry Market. I am never disappointed with the food or service. It was a great meal to end a great trip.

Good Friends and Fresh Vegetables

On November 12, 2014 By DGThomaIn Food, Friends, Writing2 Comments

I participate in our local Farm to Work, a program of the Sustainable Food Center in Austin, TX. As defined on their website, Farm to Work is an employee wellness and Farm Direct marketing program that delivers farm-fresh, locally grown produce right to employees at partner worksites.

Every two weeks on Monday, we receive an email reminding us it’s time to order our produce. Last week, my email was delivered, but my reminder notification didn’t display. At 7:00 PM I was leaving the office for the day and remembered it was the week I needed to place my order.

Frantically searching I found my email and immediately realized I was too late. The stated deadline to order was 5:00 PM.

Not willing to give up quite so easily, I replied to the email with a message asking if it was too late to order and included the explanation of how I missed the deadline. I’m sure the order email is only monitored for payments and orders, so I received no response.

On Wednesday when the produce was delivered to our office building, I was feeling sad to have missed my vegetable delivery. My sweet friend Nena stopped by my office. She often has to remind me it’s time to pick up the order, so she asked me if I had picked up my vegetables. Of course I had to share the whole story of how and why I missed the deadline.

Smiling she said, “I’ll share. I have extra.” Responding that it was okay, I explained I was going out-of-town and it was probably better that I hadn’t placed my order.

“No”, she explained, “I really have extras. I was the last one to pick up and they gave me extra produce. I told them I would share.” Feeling blessed, I said, “Okay, I’ll take a bell pepper and maybe one zucchini.”

She sat her bag of vegetables on my desk and pulled out a zucchini and a pepper. But then asked, “Do you like potatoes?” When I replied yes, potatoes were added to my pile of veggies. At this point the pile was getting large enough to require a bag to carry it. As I searched for a bag, she added peaches, okra and a butternut squash.

I have to clarify. When Nena said she got extra veggies, she actually picked up a few extra pieces of produce but not more of everything.

At this point, I have as many vegetables as she does if not more. Honestly, it was like the biblical story of thee fishes and the loaves multiplying.

Although she did pick up a few extra vegetables, in truth she is really a dear friend who decided to share her vegetables with an absent-minded, forgetful friend who forgot to order timely. Good friends and vegetables what a lovely way to brighten a day.

In search of a Piñata…..

On September 24, 2014 By DGThomaIn Family, Friends, Humor/Light Hearted, Musings, Writing1 Comment

Sometimes there just isn’t enough silly in the world.

When I found out my adult children were both going to be home (in my home) for their birthdays, I decided to create a party reminiscent of one of their childhood celebrations. My son and daughter were born 2 years and 5 days apart. Until the age of 11 and 13, they always shared a birthday party. One year the party was a Sesame street theme, and another year it was a skating party. No matter what the theme, we always had a great family celebration and lots of fun.

I enlisted my granddaughter, Jill and her mother to help with the planning. We set off to our local big box store to buy some party favors. As we filled our cart with bubbles, noise makers and more party favors, Jill looked up and said “We have to get a piñata!” There were several piñatas on the shelf; a traditional donkey, a Teen-aged Mutant Ninja Turtle (the new version) and a few miscellaneous others.

But, hanging from a wire overhead, there were a dozen or more colorful piñatas. Right in the center was a brightly colored bull piñata. It was perfect and exactly what we wanted. My daughter, Kat, went to find a sales associate to assist us in retrieving the piñata.

Kat returned with an associate who informed us Martha was on the way. Ten minutes later we were debating how to make a human pyramid so we could get the piñata ourselves. We couldn’t agree who should be the base of the pyramid or we might have attempted it. My vote was to stand in the cart and try to reach for it. I was vetoed for safety reasons.

About this time Martha showed up and started rummaging around at the ends of the aisles. Grumbling and frowning, she mumbled something about a piñata stick. She continued to pace back and forth, up and down the aisle as if the infamous piñata stick might appear by osmosis. We on the other hand were still planning a pyramid strategy when she left the aisle.

Suddenly, over the loud speaker we heard “Who has taken the piñata stick? Someone please return the piñata stick immediately”. By now, I had started to bounce on my feet a bit wondering if I could jump up and knock the piñata down. A manager wandered by and I launched into the quandary of the missing piñata stick and explained that I was thinking I could almost reach it if I jumped up. Now the manager looked up and I could tell he was wondering if he could jump up and grab the piñata, but instead he said he would go find Penny, because she could fix anything.

Now another 10 minutes went by before the manager and Penny returned. The manager smiled and told us we were in good hands as he wandered away. Martha returned and continued walking aimlessly up and down while Penny searched secret hideaways behind the end-caps. Still no one had recovered the elusive piñata stick. Penny left and I’m thinking “Who needs a piñata anyway”, when suddenly she returned triumphantly holding the piñata stick. The entire aisle broke into cheers, (even though it was only the three of us and the returning manager), it was still awesome.

One manager, and three associates later, we had a Piñata in hand and were off to plan a birthday party!

Biking and Other Happy Rembrances

On September 17, 2014 By DGThomaIn Friends, Musings, Writing2 Comments

Flipping through some old journals recently, I found an entry about my introduction to bike riding. It invoked a wonderfully pleasant memory.

About 20 years ago, I was recently divorced and trying to determine who I was supposed to be and who I wanted to become. One of my newly acquired interests was cycling. I’d made a new friend who was an avid cyclist and was not only teaching me to love riding but also loaned me a bike.

One of our first cycling trips was to Caprock Canyons State Park just outside Quitaque, Texas. We started the trip on Friday, arriving late and spending the night at a campsite. Early the next morning we awoke to a herd of deer outside our campsite. The deer were shrouded in fog and milling about on the grass completely unaffected by our presence. After a quick breakfast of granola bars, we set out on our bicycles.

6:00 AM and ready to ride - maybe! — 6:00 AM and ready to ride – maybe!

We rode on the park roads to help me get comfortable on the bike. The roads were very hilly and I remember flying down the hills, building speed and then having to get off the bike and push it up the next hill, so I could soar down again! I felt like I was six years old! Of course my friend had no problem biking up or down. We logged seven miles that morning and I was quite proud of the accomplishment.

In the afternoon, we drove to Quitaque Canyon Trail. The trail is a nature trail formed along the path of an old railroad route.

The Quitaque Canyon Trail is about 17 miles long and according to Rails to Trails “This area is one of the most picturesque and interesting throughout the entire Trailway due in part to Clarity Tunnel at mile 12.”

I wouldn’t know about that. I only made about 1/2 mile through the sand when I realized I wasn’t quite ready to tackle bicycling through sand. I chose instead to sit at the trail head and write in my journal. It was a beautiful and restful afternoon.

A few things that stand out in my mind from that day are: Friends are invaluable, laughter really is the best medicine and the Rails-to-Trails Conservatory is a great organization.

The Rails-to-Trails Conservancy is a non-profit organization. They have repurposed over 20,000 miles of trail. If you enjoy nature and the idea of recycling the rail network to provide a trail system appeals to you, I highly recommend searching one of the Rails to Trails across the United States to hike or bike. Relax, rediscover nature and maybe smile a bit.