Questions

Jan7

Sometimes, there are just too many questions that come to mind. Mostly they have to do with how the world operates and my interactions with others in the world. Unfortunately, if I ever “get” answers to these questions I have they are never satisfactory answers. The answers usually make no sense. Maybe one day I will get answers that make sense, but for now, here are the various questions that bother me. Please keep in mind the “you” is just a general term and not at anyone specifically:

  • Why does it matter to you who someone else loves?
  • How does who someone else loves affect your life?
  • Just because someone else loves someone you don’t approve of (and you don’t know either person) why do you feel a need to condemn those people?
  • Do you really believe that some people shouldn’t have access to medical care?
  • If someone needs medical care and cannot pay for it, do you think they should just suffer because they happened to be in a position that doesn’t allow for payment now?
  • Why do you think that what you believe is the only way and that if people don’t believe as you do, they need to be condemned and hurt?
  • Where is there proof that cutting taxes creates jobs?
  • Is there an amount where you can say, “yeah, you have too much money and don’t need more”?
  • Why is it when you get older, you suddenly can no longer tolerate the cold?
  • Is it ever too easy to qualify for the Boston Marathon?
  • Why do people who generally do horrible things and are generally considered horrible people by others always seem to catch the breaks in life?
  • Why is science viewed as a bad thing by so many?
  • Why are so many people delusional that they will one day be whatever they aspire to when if you look at the cold hard facts, the aspirations are not going to come true?
  • Why are cable companies afraid to let people pick what they want in a viewing package a la carte? Continue reading →

Exercise is My Strength and Weakness

Dec28

I work out a lot. Well, not so much a lot but it seems that way when you engage in the activity daily. If you have read any previous entries, you know I was and still am on a streak of consecutive days after my gym had a 30-day challenge last year. If you are wondering, they did it again this year and of course I completed it. I had to as the Chicago Marathon has gone up in price and the month of saved dues will go a long way toward paying for a spot in the 2013 edition of the marathon.

One “drawback” of my constant working out is that every once in a while, I fail to listen to what my body needs and instead focus on what my head wants. Last night, I had one of those experiences where I really should have done what I needed instead of just going with the flow and what my head was thinking. To back track a bit, my gym lately has been giving out guest passes to us members to get us to bring in friends to maybe join us. Even more interesting, my gym called me up one day earlier this month to give me two one-week passes to bring my friends to work out with me. All because the membership crew heard I had been at the gym nearly every day. Additional background: I have a cold. Nothing to really stop me from doing anything, but enough to make me need to s-l-o-w d-o-w-n. This cold is the result of sitting across from a woman at work who is disgusting in that she REFUSES to cover her mouth when sneezing / coughing. Continue reading →

I Hate Shopping

Nov15

Yes, I said it. Yes, for some people, that is a blasphemous statement to make. I don’t enjoy shopping. At least for clothing. Nothing ever fits very well. Even after losing a few pounds, clothes still just don’t fit well so trying to buy them is the world’s most frustrating experience at times for me.

Yet, there is one type of clothing that I actually don’t mind shopping for. Running and workout attire. Could that be because it is typically stretchy and therefore will fit? Probably not. Especially when I think of all the hassle and drama I must endure when purchasing new running shoes each year. And that time has just come and it looks like I still might not have a pair I really like. But that is a story for another day.

Last week, Fleet Feet Chicago had its annual Fall Fashion Show. And just like last year, this year’s show did not disappoint me. Last year, I walked away with the feeling that running outside was really no big deal. This year, the motto was “there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing.” The outfits that we saw really seemed to drive that point home for me. And honestly, I can’t wait for it to be cold so I can run outside. Weird? Maybe, but it is al true that I’m more excited than ever to run outside. Continue reading →

They Laugh at You

Jul13

You think you are the greatest. The best at everything. The LEADER. The one that others should look up to because of your greatness.

However, you’re ill-informed. You don’t know your actual history. You don’t know your actual laws. You don’t know how things really work.

Instead, they laugh at you. They know your history better than you do. They know how your laws truly work. They might try to explain it to you, but they decide it’s just not worth it; you won’t listen because you think you know best.

When confronted with your lack of knowledge, you just default to your standard “everyone else is stupid and doesn’t really know the real deal.” So, they laugh at you. You get irrefutable proof of your lack of knowledge, but still you default to your standard belief of knowing better. Continue reading →

Can’t Best Them All

Jun14

Recently, I have had a couple of absolutely terrible races. Part of it due to weather and part of it due to just not being as ready as I should be.

Last month, I ran the Soldier Field 10-mile race. It was my first time doing the race. It should have been the second time, but last year I had to bow out of the race due to an absolutely horrible headache that prevented me from running.

This year, I talked a friend into running the race with me and meeting up with her before and after the race was fun. But the race itself was the worst race I have ever done. It was just terrible.

Not due to any organization problems (those make me despise races and never want to do them again) or course issues. No, this was my absolute worst race because my wonderful friend calf cramps came back to haunt me.

I kind of knew I might be in trouble as I was awakened in the middle of the night by a cramp in my calf. I was hoping it would just be a night thing and not bother me during the race. Continue reading →

New Personal Records

Mar25

Today was the Shamrock Shuffle in Chicago. The race is known officially as the start of the running season. This was my second year doing the race and I really enjoyed it.

I was hoping I would run the race in under an hour, but as usual plans went awry. This was because earlier in the week, I was starting to come down with a cold. The weather in Chicago has been fantastic lately, so coming down with a cold was not something ideal. I was hoping it might just be allergies, but sadly it was an actual cold.

I did manage to keep it from becoming a full-blown cold however. Just a bit of a runny nose and stuffiness in the morning. It did make life less than idea since it interfered with my running. Somehow though, I managed to set a new PR with the Shamrock Shuffle today. Continue reading →

Talk to me like I am a Five-year old

Mar18

I don’t get it. I try to make it make sense in my head. Yet, I just cannot rationalize it. This election cycle is crazy. Specifically, some things that I don’t think should be an issue are an issue. So much so that I along with many other women feel under attack.

What am I talking about? Birth Control. Apparently, the GOP candidates for President are hell-bent on attacking the use of birth control. The number of laws that I have seen proposed by republican legislators lately is frightening to me.

Bills requiring doctors to lie to women about how far along in a pregnancy they are to stop abortion. Bills allowing for an employer to FIRE an employee if she is using birth control for a reason that is NOT other than to prevent pregnancy. Bills saying that women should be told that having an abortion will lead to breast cancer.

WHAT. THE. ACTUAL. EF? Call me crazy, but I thought it was 2012. And I also thought that a huge tenet of Republican / Conservative policy was for the GOVERNMENT to STAY OUT OF PEOPLE’S PERSONAL LIVES. Well, except when it comes to what women are allowed to do with their bodies.

I seriously do not understand how this works. You want the government to not tell you what to do and to stay out of your business. Yet, in the very next sentence, you are screaming for the government to be involved in something that is VERY private (at least I thought it was) and personal to a person.

Please explain to me how these two ideas mesh. If you tell me it is about protecting another person, then I have to ask you why does a woman’s rights, feelings, and thought suddenly get pushed aside because she is carrying a potential new person? And I say potential because I am one of those crazy folks who doesn’t believe that life begins at conception. Continue reading →

100 Days and Counting

Mar3

The last day I didn’t work out? November 24, 2011. That happened to be Thanksgiving. The only reason I didn’t workout that day was because I had traveled to my hometown for the holiday. Thought, it is entirely possible I did something that day once I returned home from traveling. In an earlier post, I talked about how my gym had a 30-day challenge to combat the weight gain the Average American experiences between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I breezed through those 30 days no problem. And I haven’t stopped. Yet.

February 29, 2012 was day 100 for me of working out. Nike even had a running challenge that day, which I did as part of my workout that day. At this point, I just can’t seem to stop. Every time another milestone, such as 90 days approached, then I would add more days. I even thought, I should stop after 100, but I didn’t. I worked out the next couple of days. Continue reading →

EVERYBODY has a Name

Mar2

I like nicknames. They just make my life easier somehow. It probably started when I was a teacher many moons ago, and some of my students had them. This was to help me to keep straight all the Jennifers, Mikes, etc so that when I was talking to a specific one, they knew who I was talking too.

They also come in handy when you are talking about someone and that person might be nearby and using a different name will not alert that person you are talking about them with someone else. Sure, not always the nicest thing to do, but we all gossip and have to find ways to do this without offending others. Continue reading →