Race Schedule and Results

Monday, April 9, 2012

Knock Knock

Hello?  Is anyone there?  Is this thing on?

Ahem...

Hi.  Sorry that I've been gone so long.  Life threw me lemons and although I'm fairly good at making lemonade with them, I decided that this patch was worthy of more - like some tequila and salt.  It's been a long road, but we're in Georgia and loving it.  I love the town of Suwanee where we moved to, the house is amazing (albeit FILLED with projects that seem like they will never end) and I'm starting to feel like I'm home way faster than I ever thought I would.  That's good. 

But with all the good going on, I've been doing a lot of self evaluation and while I like some things, there need to be some changes too.  I think that's good to do every once in a while, as hard as it may be.  Honestly, sometimes you might not like what you find out about yourself.

For me, it's not about what I don't like about myself.  I just kind of feel like I'm on a never ending ride of commitments - all things that I brought on myself and things that no one else would ever give a damn about, but they eat me up inside.  I'm the kind of person that wants things done yesterday.  That's hard to do with a move.  Real hard.  And with training.  And with work.  You see how it starts to spiral.

So in my latest self evaluation, I decided that I needed to take control again.  I mean, this is MY life and I can do what I want with it.

Our first visitor comes on the 27th of April. Kristin dear, the house ain't gonna be done.  I will try to have a mattress for you to sleep on and I will have appliances in the kitchen to cook with, but there might be spackle on the walls, paint on the old floors, a bathroom without a sink.  We'll work around it.  The next set of visitors come in May (my momma and dad... yay!!!!).  For them, well, I know my hubby and that's why we're working such long hours each day - I kid, I kid.  We want to show off the house to you.  But, there will still be boxes laying around.  And there might not be new floors down yet. Heck, we might STILL have the poison ivy infested beds out front (okay, no, we won't), but I know that you'll love the house just the way it is.

As for training - here's the big one.  I had a nice little chat today with the best coach in the world.  She gets me right now and right now, my heart is anywhere but in training.  I've been in training for 6 years.  Longer if you count the "marathon years" (haha... the ones where I ran just one marathon a year as my only race... oh the days).  It saddens me that training has become a chore.  And this is probably the thing that I've struggle the most with through this whole move.  I want to run and bike and swim.  I love those things.  But I need to do it because I want to do it, not because I have to do it.  My season is changing a lot this year from what I had originally planned.  This is something that I struggle with too, but I know that I'm doing what's right for me right now and that's a good feeling.  I've been loving my nighttime exploration runs where Tom and I leave our neighborhood and just explore.  We've found some awesome trails and parks and old town Suwanee.  We talk about his day and mine (as we adjust to us not being together all day) and what we want to do this week, this month and this year.  I'm going to just "wing" it a bit for the time being and see what happens.  It's good for my mind and my soul.  I don't know if I'll be racing in Knoxville in less than a month and that doesn't worry me in the slightest.  I might not race at all this year.  We'll see.

And work... we'll business is booming which is amazing.  And I'll make due with the fact that my warehouse is in shambles and I can't find half of my inventory.  My customers know no different.  I'm getting into a daily routine that's better than it's ever been - I wake up early, walk the dogs, hit the office, fill my orders and before I know it, Tom's coming home and we're starting our day.  I'm getting used to this.

So life is good. 

One last thing about training.  So, these hills in Georgia. HOLY FREAKING WOW!  If you can't bounce a quarter off my butt after running these every day, nothing will stop the jiggle.  I think in the last 11 days I've run more net elevation gains that I have in 32 years of my life. 

And I'm loving that too.

I'm back people... Thanks for being patient with my absence and for being understanding as I figure out this game we call life.

27 comments:

Matty O said...

You just had to come up by Heather and I if you wanted hills in Ohio :) we have PLENTY to share!

Glad things are clicking fast for you guys, you are proof that when Heather and I uproot and move, it is feasible :)

You and I are on the same training plan then !!! The NO TRAINING PLAN - Training Plan. Works great.

Ride when you want to ride, run when you want to run haha. So far I feel AWESOME!

I know my times are not going to be great but I will have fun this year. Trust me, 100% better mental place this year than any other year.

Tell Tom I said hi! PS, round up for the weeds!!!!!! ;)

Karen said...

Glad things are starting to settle in for you... sort of :) I love Suwanee, they have really worked hard to revitalize the area with the amphitheatre and trails. If you are looking for a weekly run, there is a run every Tuesday night at 6:30 from Big Peach in Suwanee Town Center. They usually have a huge turn out. You are also not too far from one of my favorite riding routes. Low traffic, pretty scenery - sort of a mix of residential and farm land. Plenty of hills in cass you want to work on the quarter bouncing :) this route is in Dacula. (Hwy 316 and Harbins Road area) http://sandbox.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ga/dacula/927627802171

TriMOEngr said...

Sounds like all things are coming together - even if not in the way you may have envisioned. Hang in there and this giant craziness will settle into the more "controlled chaos" of everyday life. So great to hear from you. Looking forward to pictures next time!

Jon said...

Oh! Georgia hills! You guys HAVE to head up to Helen, Georgia and ride up Brasstown Bald, Georgia's highest peak. Dahlonega has some good climbing just north of it.

Christi said...

I am so happy to hear from ya! Take your time and enjoy the new environment and fun. Everything will come together!

Alexandra said...

Glad you are all moved in!

I definitely recommend visiting Dress Up Boutique and Yogli Mogli in Old Town Suwanee (the "square"). They are great Suwanee finds!

Also, you guys should hike up Stone Mountain one day! It is a nice hike and has great views of Atlanta and more!

Cant wait for the Dirty Girl at the end of the month!

Alec

Kim said...

Ive missed you friend. Glad youre back :)

Big Daddy Diesel said...

Crossing Georgia as a possible moving location, me and hills dont get along

Its good to hear things are coming together, I was thinking about you guys this weekend with glass city coming up in 2 weeks, Hard to believe its been a year since you and Tom kidnapped me *ahem* and forced me to go 13.1 on foot *looks the other way* Both of you are missed in Ohio

Anne-Marie said...

Glad to hear you've made it to Georgia and are settling in!

I hate when it feels like you're losing control of things - good for you for recognizing it and doing what you need to.

Heidi @BananaBuzzbomb said...

Whew! You've had a challenging time. But still exciting!! Love your refreshing take on it all and how you're soaking up every bit of your new experiences. Enjoy!

Heather-O said...

Glad you are getting into a routine and loving the new place! Don't force the training, just keep it fun! If it's not fun it's not really worth putting all that effort and money into. Besides, I may not be racing Knoxville either...maybe we can hang out and cheer everyone else on while eating bon-bons and ice cream sundaes ;)

Molly said...

Happy to hear everything is going well as you settle into your new digs! How fun to have new places to explore on your runs. I understand how you're feeling regarding training. Aside from my half marathon this Sunday, I have only one other race planned for the year. It's freeing to not have to stick to a training schedule, but weird at the same time! : )

C. Truelove-Karcz said...

Hills that will make a quarter bounce offa your butt...I'll approach my hilly route much differently this evening with this to think about!

Hopefully when you are all settled and loving Atlanta-metro even more, we can find the time to meet!

KovasP said...

So good to hear everything's falling into place!

Steve said...

Moving is a big big big deal. Your whole life changes, so probably takes time to get in your groove again.

Best of luck. :)

Jamie said...

Hey Colleen - I just found out I may be headed down to GA to visit family later this summer. No clue when, but I'll let you settle in completely before I crash for a Rev3 party weekend! :-)

Ironman By Thirty said...

What is it with butts today? First Jeff was talking about his butt feeling small and now you are bouncing quarters off of yours... what's next?? :)

Welcome to the No Training Plan - Training Plan team. I've been doing that for the past couple of weeks and enjoying it. I'm just about ready to get some structure back though myself. We'll see how I adapt.

Good luck getting settled!!! Maybe you can hire Matt & Jenn Smith for some grunt work. It's not like they are going to be busy getting settled or anything ;)

Teamarcia said...

It's so great to hear from you and that things are starting to settle. I've heard about GA hills....don't really ever wanna experience them. ha!

Caroline said...

Hills...I met a couple of them Saturday...they killed my poor legs!

Great to read that things are settling nicely!!

Unknown said...

Welcome to the South! Life is slower, the people are friendlier, and the wine just tastes better! And the BBQ, have ya tried that yet?

Alili said...

Yay! Welcome to ATL! After running down here for a few months travel back home and run one of the 'hillier' races...you'll kill it. :)

Survivormama said...

Just found your blog...will be back to explore...I am new to running (8 months) and just started to train for my first half-marathon...so excited! Nice to meet you!

you can follow me here if you'd like
http://runningsurvivor.blogspot.com

DRog said...

Congrats on getting moved in! Great news...and those hills sound awesome...lol@ quarter off the butt you now have a new guage throw away that scale:)

D

Matthew Smith said...

Yay for moving to Georgia! I'm glad you're adjusting and settling in although I know it'll take time. You sound chipper and upbeat rather than choked down with boxes and projects. Keep that chin up!

I think you're wise to just race what you feel like racing. If it's a chore, then there is no fun in that! We'll just have fun going out for rides just for the fun of it and not necessarily for training!

Enjoy those hills! :)

Carolina John said...

Haha, Yes! people from up north always underestimate the hill capacity of the deep south. we gots 'em! Y'all will get used to running those hills soon enough, and it will make a flat course like IMFL seem so much easier!

Glad you're finally getting settled in. it's taken me about 2 years to finally feel really settled in Raleigh, so I'm about to hit the same type of self-assesment as well. It's not always fun, but you come out the other side in a better place.

Jason said...

It's just life and nobody would expect you to have an immaculate house within days/weeks of moving in. You kidding me I've been in my house for 3 years and there is stuff still not done that we wanted done.

Enjoy it. Life always goes forward.

Jennie said...

So glad to hear that you're loving your new home! :)