Week 30: July 22nd-28th: Nose injuries and Lake Hennessey

Saturday night, I did something incredibly idiotic. I'm quite clumsy and I fall, run into things, and bruise myself often. Now, usually these are just minor annoyances but nothing resulting in days of serious pain. Saturday night, however, was much different. We have a sliding wood door in the kitchen that can be closed to shut off the back half the house. We never, ever use it but since we got the pup we like to keep him where we can see him so we've been shutting that door when he is out of his crate to minimize him wandering all around. It's the evening time, we've spent the day at the lake and are now relaxing and watching Sons of Anarchy on Netflix. I got up to go to the bathroom and I'm explaining to J a part he missed in the last episode. It's pretty dark in the house and I'm such an electricity hoarder that I refuse to turn lights on just to walk to the bathroom and am stubborn in that "I know the route to the bathroom, even in the dark, so who needs lights?". That being said, as I'm recapping the episode to J in the other room I plowed right into the wood door in the hallway NOSE FIRST, just BAM!!! When you're walking in the dark and you assume you've got open space, you walk without reservation and I am a swift walker. Excruciating pain surged in my nose and I dropped to the floor in tears. J came running in, flipped on the lights, looked at my face and said "I think it's crooked" which lead to more crying. I finally got up the nerve to look in the mirror. No major blood, and from what I could see my nose wasn't out of sorts just in a lot of pain, and with a bruised ego to match. Who walks into a wood door?!? I've done a screen door before, and a glass door but usually had my forehead or hands take the worst of it. This time, just my nose.
The result has been a constant headache and pain in my nose and surrounding areas accompanied by a nice big dark red bump on the bridge of my nose.
Only I would do this to myself right before I am taking a trip to Hawaii. So my vacation photos will look lovely, and in addition to that I'm presenting at the most important conference of my graduate career thus far on Saturday. My dad said it should be nice and purple by then. DOH!

My 5 things:

1. Spent some time last week writing my story. I'm realizing it may be years before I actually get down in words everything I need to say. It's rare I have the time coupled with the energy to write any more.

2. I ran with my pup! Only a little down the block a bit during his walks. Unfortunately, I came to regret it later since it has been days and I am still feeling the pain in my IT band from it. Perhaps I got a little ahead of myself.

3. I turned in my 2nd drafty of my dissertation proposal. I got my first edits back on July 8th and my advisor said the turn around for the next draft should be "10 or so days"... well I milked that "or so" part and didn't turn it in until the 24th. Although I know the 2nd draft was still rough, and going to need much more work, it feels like such a relief to have turned it in and know that for the next few days at least, I don't have the burden of an unfinished draft looming over me.

4. Had a good talk with my sister on the phone last week. We each got to vent and gossip a bit and catch up on things we each have going on.

5. Saturday we decided to take our new pup Riley on his first visit to the lake and have a go at swimming. German Pointers are made for swimming, they even have webbed toes specifically for that and he loves getting wet in the bath so we thought he'd go nuts at the lake. Turns out it may have been a bit overwhelming for him but he still managed to have some fun.

Lake Hennessey in Napa

Week 21: May 20th-26th...any day now

I was going to start out with how it is "that time of year" when everything piles up and I feel like I might explode...but then I realized, when is it NOT that time for me?  We're nearing the end of the quarter so it feels more so than usual, especially since I'm supposed to somehow have a 1st draft of my dissertation proposal by 6/14 and let me just say, I am definitely no where near close to having that (it's about a 40-50 page proposal of which I have maybe about 5 pages written). Add that to everything else that is going on plus trying to be somewhat excited about a trip to Hawaii that we're planning, having to worry about moving in July, and trying to not completely dread this birthday I've got coming this week. I could really use some major stress relief. Any day now.

My 5 things:

1. Went running. Unfortunately, only once...again. I went on Tuesday, and actually had to stop partway through it because of my injury. It started hurting pretty severely at just under a mile and a half. I decided not to push it and the whole rest of the day I was in pain. This pain continued (although dulled) over the next few days which lead to my pathetic running count of 1 for the week.

2. I actually wrote in here, not just on my usual Monday update. It is rare I find the combination of time/energy/motivation to sit down and compile my thoughts into print but when the planets align, it really is a wonderful outlet. There is always so much spinning around in my head and when I'm able to release an ounce of it here or there it makes a world of difference.

3. I baked cookies on Saturday for a BBQ I was attending on Sunday. I made my now-becoming-a-staple peanut butter cookies. I ran into a problem when I realized I was stuck at home without a vehicle and didn't have an eggs. Thankfully, I was able to get creative and utilized a substitute that, while it sounds disgusting, turned out to work pretty well. I only needed one egg, and a couple tbsp of mayonnaise did the trick just fine. They were a big hit with everyone, until I told J the magic ingredient and then he decided they were "gross".

4. Saturday evening my friend Rob who was down in the area for business came over to our side of the bay to get some drinks in early celebration for my birthday. Rob, J and I went to Alameda to a bar and got some drinks and toasted to me turning yet another year older. Thankfully, Rob is turning 30 this year so I didn't feel so old. I drank too much, which rarely happens and I didn't have to drive, which also rarely happens (and is likely why the 1st thing is a rarity).

5. Sunday, in all my hungover glory, we went to a BBQ at Rob's sister's house. There was tons of delicious food to which I made sure to eat any and everything available to me. I'm not sure why, but when I'm hungover it is like I am unable to get full. I just want to eat all day long....so I did. It was nice to be outside in the sun, eating wonderful food. 

Week 12: March 18th-24th...and I'm still waiting

I'm getting quite good at this waiting game.I did have my interview this week, and I think it went fairly. The site seems awesome and I think I'd get a lot of good experience but due to the politics involved in this practicum/internship/grad school ish... I don't think it will give me the hours I need, and I wasn't exactly qualified for the work. So I'm not betting on getting a placement.  Still no word from any of the other 4 sites that haven't contacted me yet. Judging by the timeline, I think it's fairly clear I'll be a member of Clearing House this year (where those who don't get placed get to...start over and apply to new sites). I think if I just come to terms with that now, it won't be such a disappointment when Notification Day comes and my phone never rings.


My 5 things:

1. I had a long conversation with my mom about some events of our past that my family chose to sweep under the rug, and even after everything else came out, these incidents were never explained to me. Through asking questions, I actually learned a lot about my mom and about her childhood that I also never knew. This was actually one of the most honest conversations I've ever had with my mom in my entire life. It amazes me to hear the things my mother has endured in her life and reaffirms my belief that she is by far, one of the strongest women I have ever known.

2. I took some time out to write. I started writing my story some time ago, but have been somewhat avoidant of it due to the nature of the writing and the level of honesty I have to have with myself when I write. I know that someday, my story won't just be a file saved in a folder, I know that it is destined for more than that, but it is going to be a long process. I'll get there, I know I will. Each time I allow myself to open up and write I get that much closer.

3. I did Yoga twice this week. I wish I had time to do it more, well actually, I'm sure I could make time to do it more. So really, I wish I would make more time for it in my life but twice a week is better than nothing.

4. I watched the sunset and did some evening birdwatching over in Alameda alone. It was so beautiful out and there were tons of birds to be seen. I went a little late and didn't have much sunlight left, but it was a nice quiet time to myself. I'd like for J to join me next time.

View of SF from Alameda

5. Went to the movies with J on Friday night. We went to see the very silly movie, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone. It was as expected, over-the-top ridiculous, a little gross, and very slapstick but what else would come from that combination of actors? J was less impressed but I went in expecting pretty much what I got out of it so I was satisfied. But daaaammnnn movies are expensive. $11.50 each per ticket. We need to remember that matinee is the way to go.

Week 10: March 5th-10th.... sickness took over

So turns out that possible allergies/sickness was full blown sickness. That's the hardest I've been hit by a sickness in years. I was out half of Tuesday, all of Wednesday and Thursday, managed to gather enough strength to power through Friday and was on the couch again Saturday. Finally, I am starting to feel a bit better. Normally I'll miss 1 class here or there when I'm feeling sick, but I don't think I've ever canceled entire days multiple times in a row. It was bad.

Despite that major set back (to which I am attributing my late entry) I was still able to find the time to do my 5 beneficial things for myself, they are as follows:

1. Actually stayed home sick from everything, whereas normally I'd try to power on through. I actually did try on Tuesday, but traffic stopped me (literally!) and I decided it was much smarter for me to turn around and head home and cancel my meeting and tell my professor I wouldn't be making it in. I made sure to really focus on rest and fluids, despite my frustration with lack of productivity.

2. I did yoga for the first time in a long while. I realized that a) I'm really not as flexible as I once was and b) how much I actually enjoy yoga (I had forgotten!)

3. On Saturday, when I was feeling a bit better, I decided to park about a half a mile from the shopping center where I was going to do my errands (grocery store, pick up prescription, go by the bank and the post office) All these buildings are near each other in a shopping center to which I normally park in the parking lot and walk around. It was such a beautiful day and I'd been feeling so useless from my days on the couch I made sure to park far enough away that I'd get about a mile and a half walk in while accomplishing my errands. Multitasking!

4. I actually wrote on here, not just for my weekly 5 beneficial things list posting. I find it so helpful to write out (or type out, rather) my thoughts and yet I make such little time lately to do this.

5. I went to my school's library...on a Sunday. Despite wanting to lay around all day and being painfully lazy, I made the 45mile drive to my school's library (that's dedication, eh!?) and holed up in there for a few hours scoring and assessment for a client and working on some other assignments. Did I mention it was beautiful and sunny out too? Making it that much more difficult to sit inside a library all day. BUT I was able to get a lot of necessary work accomplished.

Week 1: Jan 1st-6th

I must admit, trying to do 5 things per week to benefit myself proved to be rather difficult.
Much harder than I originally anticipated. I'm sure it will become easier to do and pick out beneficial things as time progresses, but this week's items are not anything to write home about. I guess another lesson this will teach me is what types of things are actually beneficial for me and which feel more like a chore...or better yet: those that may feel like a chore, but are actually quite beneficial. Needless to say, I think this will be a great challenge for myself.
After I wrote about my New Year's Resolution and discussed it with my boyfriend, he decided he wanted to document progress for his resolutions as well so it's nice to know we're sort of doing this together, albeit in much different ways.

Week 1:

1. Actually took a "sick day"...by that I mean I didn't feel well, like a sickness had come over me and instead of ignoring my body's signals, I stayed home, slept a lot, laid on the couch and watched movies with lots of fluids. This resulted in waking up Sunday feeling better (Not totally cured,  but much better).

2. Finished a year long project off my Pinterest that I began Jan 1st, 2012.  The project was a diary/calender/log of daily doings.

This project is ongoing, but I will admit the first year was the most difficult because each card had to be made and written out with the date, and then the entry for 2012 needed to be entered. Also the acquisition of all the postcard dividers needed to happen. I actually ordered some vintage ones off ebay that actually have messages from the 50's and 60's from various parts of the U.S. which I thought added my own personal addition to the project. Although, the last postcard is actually a blank one of Oakland I purchased a few months back in my city.

So this week, I finally got around to finishing up the last few days in December that I'd fallen behind on because of all the holiday/family/buying a car/driving back happenings that caused me to be just too busy to finish in December. Now I'm up-to-date with these and it is already proving worthwhile and interesting to look at the current day and see what I was doing on that day, the previous year.

3. Went to First Fridays in Oakland. It's an art/community event, many cities parttake in their own versions of this but I realized we've been living in Oakland now for a little over 5 months and yet we've never gone to our own city's First Friday event, or any events in our city really. There are so many events and opportunities within minutes of our front door and yet we've experienced so very little of them.

4. During my hour commute home from work on Friday, I plugged in my old I-pod and rocked out to a variety of guilty pleasure tunes I have on there that I completely forgot existed. I love singing in my car, loudly and ALONE so as not to be judged on my lack of talent.

5. I wrote my cousin Kass a letter, snail-mail style. She does not partake in any social-networking, is not a fan of phone calls, and only so much can be said via text. I proposed the idea a few months back that she and I write good old fashion letters and she wrote me in November and I've yet to get around to writing her so I sat down yesterday and wrote out as much as my hand could bare (which proved to be fairly little since I haven't handwritten a letter in awhile). She and I were so close growing up, we did practically everything together. Throughout our late teen years and early 20's various things tore us apart, then brought us back together. We're in such different places in our lives now: I'm out here in a big city in CA going to graduate school with as much freedom as that allows and she is back in a small town in WA, married with a baby on the way, a toddler running around her house and a religion I can't agree with that has resulted in the biggest separation of the two of us. I love her with all my heart, and I love her children as though they are a part of me so the connection with her, however the universe allows is incredibly important to me.

All in all, this week has shown me that beneficial things for me come in all sorts of ways and I need to take the time throughout my week to not only actively engage in things that will benefit my mind/body/soul/heart... but also to take the time to notice those things I may already be doing and how these things benefit my mood and well being. I think part of it is that we so often are already taking part in beneficial activities, but aren't taking the time to acknowledge to positive impact these things can have on us if we let them.
 Week 1 complete, now on to Week 2. This should be interesting as this is the first week of a new quarter in school, my busiest and possibly most difficult yet!!

Running Update:16 months in and now an IT Band strain

I've been horrible lately about writing.
It's not that I don't have things I'd like to sit down and write about, and it's not totally about the time in which it takes, because I do have some down time in my crazy schedule. I'm not sure what it is.
Perhaps I should make an actual effort, carve out some time for it. I bet it would actually benefit my sanity a bit (isn't that part of the reason I began this in the first place?!)
So Sept. 19th I did something monumental.
I went to the doctor for problems I was having.
I cannot remember the last time I went to the doctor, let alone used the time effectively to address concerns I was having.
I'm turning into such a grown up.
My main concern was, in fact, my knee.
 I haven't been able to run in almost a month and it's been killing me.
I've noticed a lot of changes that I'm not happy about. My weight is one, but also, just my overall well being. As much as I hate running, I've realized I hate NOT running, much more.
So I went to the doctor for the pain I've been experiencing since July (After the craft dash)
Turns out I have an IT band strain, or iliotibial band syndrome
It's apparently a common injury for runners. Ya hear that Ma'? I've got myself a real athletic injury!! 
Never thought I'd see the day!
Any way, so I find this out and so I'm curious and nervous to hear what that means for me.
My doctor gave me some stretches to do 3 times a day for 3 weeks.
It was a print out that I actually also found online IT Band stretches and strengthening exercises 
from Runningtimes.com.
The Doc said if in 3 weeks I'm not seeing improvement, that the next step will be physical therapy.
So, I'm about a week and a half in and...... I'm in more pain!
I'm not sure if that is part of the process or not.
I was thinking it could be, because I'm stretching out a strain, so maybe it gets worse before it gets better? The doctor didn't explain that to me.
She told me after about a week of the stretches that I could try running and see how it feels. Obviously I am to run less than I normally would, she said about half my usual run.
I haven't tried it yet, because of the whole pain actually worse now thing.
The next step is to actually get out there and do it.
This next step, quite naturally, makes me a bit nervous.
I guess I'll never know, until I try.

Writing Your Story

I've started writing.

I think it's a combination of inspiration from Erin Merryn's work and reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett.

When you've got a story to tell...
You've got to get in in writing. No matter how long in takes, or how difficult the journey...
You've got to write it.
It may take a lifetime, but I've taken the hardest step: the first one.