Nothing is New, Thanks for Asking

Last month my best friend went on a one-week trip to Mexico. She called me when she got back and filled me in on the fun and hijinks of her trip. "So," she said after telling me about her week, "What's new with you?"

"Nothing."

Nothing is new with me. Ever. That used to bother me. Surely something should happen in the course of daily life. Something of some interest or humor or significance. But I rack my brain on how to answer this question and can come up with little more than the cute new thing the cat is doing and which--I'm well aware--most people don't want to hear about.

I've recently come to appreciate "nothing" though. Two of my friends are heading into what look to be brutal, knock-down, drag out divorces.  My sister is dealing with two sick kids while being sick herself. One friend is freaking out while trying to work and homeschool her daughter. Another friend is terrified a business venture she entered is not going to pay off and she and her husband have thrown almost all of their money (including their home mortgage) into it...

Thank you, but I'm happy to take "nothing" in lieu of the alternatives. Friends and family tease that Blair and I are the most stable (read: boring) couple around and it may be true. We're in bed by 10 on weeknights and 10:15 on weekends.  We don't go out drinking and dancing. We will probably be in our home until the day we die. (No one can claim to lose our mailing address. We're right where we've always been!). We prefer to see matinees and eat dinner early on Saturday nights to avoid the crowds. In essence... we are ready to join the blue-hairs who eagerly line up at the K&W counter at 4:30pm for dinner and get excited when the fish they like is on the menu. We are very, very close to being these people...

But that's okay. Our boring little life is good. We're in love, we've got fish and cats, good jobs, and good health. Lose touch with me for 6 months then call me up and ask what's new. "Nothing," I'll say.

And I'll be grateful for it.

I Caught The Crud

Well. This weekend was not anything close to what I had planned. I came down late Friday night with this flu/cold crud that has been going around town and that I have been feeling smug about avoiding. Careful about that smugness--God will get you.

I spent all--and I do mean all-weekend in bed. Slept about 17 hours/day, waking up long enough only to do a shot of Nyquil (the nectar of the Gods when you're sick) and fall back into a coma. Olivia stayed with me almost the entire time. She "log-walked" on me. Meaning I'd start out on my back, with her on my stomach. I'd roll to the side and she 'd sidestep so as not to fall off me and then stayed on my hip. Same when I flipped to my stomach and she slept on my back.  Very comforting.

I feel...okay...today. Still not great. Hard to tell if it's sickness related or if my body has just collapsed from 2 full days of non-movement. I'm so stiff and sore I can't stand it. I'm going to try a walk outside later today, just to breath fresh air and move.

Blair was very sweet, running all the errands, cooking and cleaning while I slept. It almost makes up for the fact that while I was awake he followed me anxiously around the house with a can of Lysol, dousing everything I touched or might have touched with a heavy dose. (He's a wee bit concerned about not coming down sick himself.)

I have a ton of work staring me in the face and about 80 e-mails that need replied to.  How on earth do you people with children manage when you're sick? That thought occurred to me as I woke up between my 16th and 17th hour of sleep and then rolled back over and started snoring. I can't imagine feeling like I did and having to deal with getting little ones to bed and, oh I don't know, feeding them and such. Kudos to all parents reading this today.

Life Creeps In, Life Creeps Out

At the start of 2008, I vowed to devote myself to bettering my writing. To take a "writer's journey" and explore new genres and interests while simultaneously striving to improve on the basics such as grammar, use of simile and metaphor, attention to detail, etc.

I dropped much of my paid work and cleared my schedule. But I've noticed life has a way of creeping in. And what starts out as a month with no committment other than to write suddenly becomes filled with meetings, speeches, workshops, lunches, assignments, and other obligations.

This month, for example, I agreed to:

• Give a speech in my advanced Toastmasters club
• Create a tri-board for the club (the accursed thing still isn't complete)
• Write two 600-word assignments for a regional publication.
• Write a monthly article for a UK-based dog site, www.dogtwist.com
• Organize long runs for my running group
• Teach a 2 hour networking workshop at the Women's Resource Center
• Attend an all-day marketing brainstorming meeting for a friend
• Facilitate a 2-hour Saturday writing workshop for kids in the foster care system
• Attend a concert of my neice's in Raleigh
• Attend as a guest a women-only networking/mentoring club
• Wrangle out the details of a dental claim with our insurance company
• 2 doctor appointments, one trip to the vet, 2 races, 1 massage (had a coupon), 2 lunches with friends, one dinner out.

Looking ahead to March, I already have a book signing at a local libary and a book launch party to attend for a friend. The rest of the month appears gloriously free of commitment. And I aim to keep it that way. I've discovered that when I have a free schedule, it's so easy to agree to "stuff." I think, "Well, I certainly have time to fit a speech or a tri-board into my month." But I say that 10 times and then--oops!--the month is full and I didn't focus on what I said I wanted to focus on.

So... back to hibernation. It's a game of push and pull. I do too much... I cut back... I let life creep in... I push back. On a bright note, however, I've done over 50,000 new words of creative writing since the start of the new year. That's probably more than I did all last year combined. So I'm getting there. It's just a matter of deciding WHAT I want to spend my time on, WHY that's important to me, and then sticking to it.

Here's a quote I love:

"Let the act of changing be the reward, and do not count on the outcome, for it may well be far different than you ever imagined."

Greensboro Marathon - May 3rd

Years ago, Greensboro used to host a marathon. But interest died out and the marathon faded away.

It's back. May 3rd, 2008 will mark the return of the Greensboro marathon. And yours truly has signed up to run in it.

This marathon will be different from my last in that I have much different expectations.  I'm in no way trained for a marathon and 8 weeks is not near enough time to get me there. But my running group from last summer has been e-mailing and about 8 of us have agreed it would be fun to run this marathon together. We're not worried about time or speed. This is just for fun. I fully expect to end up walking part of this marathon and if I finish in 5 or 5 1/2 hours, that's fine.

Even in fun though, we all realize we've got to step up our training just in order to be able to finish the 26.2. So starting next Sunday, we're meeting for long runs each week. We'll start at 10 miles and hopefully work up to at least one 20 mile run.  That part will be fine. It's easy (or easier) to get a run in when I'm surrounded by friends.  The bigger challenge will be upping my weekly mileage.

Right now, I'm running about 20 miles/week. I need to quickly boost that to about 30-35.  That means longer runs and more running days. I talked to Blair last night and told him I wanted to run this marathon but that it would mean more training time. He was supportive. (I know, shocking.) But I'm going to try to fit my runs in during the day so they don't take too much time away from our time in the evenings.

The "real" marathon this year will be Richmond, VA in November. That's the one where I'm gunning for a under 4-hour marathon. Serious training will start in late June.  It will be something of a party as the two guys I run Kiawah with are going and both their wives and many members of their extended family may go and participate in the half-marathon or 8k. Plus several other running friends are going, including one woman from my running group who is aiming for a 4-hour marathon because that would qualify her for Boston. I'd love to have a running partner in a marathon and Pam and I typically run well together, so who knows? But it will be fun seeing at least a handful of people I know on the course.

Time to get running. May 3rd will be here before I know it.