thankful.

While it may have been more timely for me to write this yesterday, I feel as if it should always be the appropriate time to share what you are thankful for and share how God has blessed you. The normal culprits are still on top of the list – friends, family, my health, the health and happiness of those I love, etc. But the list I’m going to compile for you today are those things that I may not always express my thanks for, the things I am more apt to complain and whine about. At the end of the day, my problems are not that big, and if looked at in the correct light, they still have blessing written all over them.

*I am broke… This is true. I am. This is one of the consequences of not being able to work for a whole year when you have a career that is dependent on the health of your body. But I have a roof over my head and food to eat and all the other necessities of life while still being able to pursue my dream. All the things that made it possible for that to come together for me this year was truly a blessing.

*I have a bum knee… This is obviously something I complain and worry about often, especially when earlier this year it started swelling up often and acting as if immediate surgery was imminent. But I have revamped my training and changed some things around, and I can go days without even thinking about it. Sometimes when circumstances force us to change things we would have been slow to change on our own, it can be a blessing in disguise. I’ll write more about this at a later date, but I truly believe this could be the case with my knee.

*I’m still single…but I might not be for long. ☺ Actually, that’s not the part that is the blessing because I have found happiness just being me and growing as a person and constantly learning about myself. And I do enjoy my drama free life, so being single is not always something to complain about; sometimes it’s something to savor.

*I am flat-chested...there will always be push-up bras. What other body part allows for this kind of quick fix?

*I get a fair share of rude comments on my blog…but I also get many positive ones. And at the end of the day, even the people who don’t ever have anything nice to say still find me interesting enough to even visit so that says something. It’s also been a free anger management course. These days I can read mean comments and simply erase them without posting them or responding and getting rude and sarcastic back…sometimes.

*It’s a recession…of course I don’t know how much it’s really effecting me directly because I’d be strapped for cash regardless probably, but I have never shopped less in my life. That is huge for me. In fact, my favorite shirt right now is my white v-neck from Target…if that doesn’t say recession I don’t know what does.


I guess my point is that I have a lot to be thankful for and there really isn’t anything I can think of to make me not be thankful. I am a blessed individual and I know that everything in my life has a reason and a purpose.

Happy Thanksgiving!

for granted

In college all we had to do was take a trip down to the equipment room. That’s where Tom, our equipment manager, would happily hand out our shoes and equipment. Actually, Tom seemed quite stingy with some people, as if the shoes were bought with his own money, but with me he was quite the giver. I could always score an extra shirt or two if need be, and if I thought I could use another pair of spikes, Tom always assured me it wasn’t a problem. Then once I graduated, I really struck gold. My contract with Adidas assured that I could go months without doing laundry as long as I continued to just purchase more underwear. I had so many pairs of shoes, some I would never even bother to look at, I’d just pass them off to whoever was lucky enough to wear 7.5. On top of this, I had my equipment allowance…basically a chance to get whatever else I might want that didn’t come in the shipments already sent to me. Thousands of dollars to blow meant that each and every friend and family member could bet that every Christmas gift and Birthday gift would contain 3 stripes. I had everyone I knew looking fly at the gym – or just lounging around the house if the gym wasn’t really their cup of tea. After my contract with Adidas ended and I switched to wearing the swoosh, I rid my closet of every item I had accumulated. Most of it went to my friends, and the remaining items ended up at the goodwill. Sad as it was to part with clothes with the tags still attached and shoes never taken out of their boxes, I did what I needed to do to make room for a whole new brand.

Then the shipments stopped coming. For a while it was no big deal. If you’ve been a track athlete for long enough you accumulate enough workout clothes and shoes that will sustain you for quite some time. So maybe I have to wear last seasons sports bra to practice where in year’s past that would have been the first thing in the giveaway bag. No big deal. At the end of the day spandex is spandex. I’m not even afraid to cross-brand if I have to. (ok…it still bothers me a little). But the thing that you can’t get away with as easily, are shoes. I’ve always gone through running shoes and competition spikes quickly, knowing that there was always a pile in the closet to replace them. But there is no pile anymore and I’ve just about exhausted my current supply.

If I had to go back and do it over again, perhaps I would have hoarded a bit more. I never thought there would come a time when I might actually have to purchase shoes, but for the immediate future that seems to be the case. In my line of work, top of the line shoes are not a luxury, they’re a necessity. I use about four different kinds of training shoes in any given week. It’s times like these where I wish I could just go see Tom. I wish it were that simple.

WWBD

I was talking to one of my good friends the other day as she was preparing to head out on a date. And not just any date…a first date. Totally unique and distinctive from all other categories of dates, it requires a different kind of preparation and mindset. So being the great girlfriends that we are, we prepared together. In case you are unaware, I am the dating guru. How can this be?, you ask, since you constantly read about my uninspiring dating experiences and are woefully aware of my status as an unmarried spinster. Well I suppose it’s because I have experience. Not necessarily the most or the best, but experience nonetheless. And she…does not. Not because she isn’t absolutely amazing, because she’s more than fabulous. She just doesn’t waste her time, as I sometimes seem to do.

So during the course of conversations, as I was explaining to her what to do and how to do it, I said that whenever she was unsure about which course of action to take, she should simply think to herself, WWBD. I realize this probably borders on being sacrilegious and I am hoping that Jesus is not too offended that I would borrow his phrase and use it in this context. But I do believe in following certain protocols on first dates and if you ever find yourself on a first date wondering what you should do in a certain situation, perhaps you might find yourself asking what Brianna would do too.

Some examples:

-Don’t Pay: Don’t even do the complimentary reach. Not for the tip, not for popcorn, not for anything. He asked to take you out, so let him. This is his time to wine and dine you, you can be a 21st century feminist at a later date.

-Don’t pick the date spot: Guys are lazy enough as it is. Make sure you have them show they’re willing to put in a little effort. It’s fine if they get your approval, but none of this …so whadda ya wanna do???

-Order a real meal: no side salads and hold the dressing. I have no idea if this is annoying to men, but it’s annoying to me.

-No hanging out before going on a real date: If you meet someone, just make sure you go on a real date first. Don’t hang out and have a Blockbuster night. It’s the whole laziness thing.

-Look like yourself: Don’t go too far out of your way to look so fabulous that any time after that will seem like a letdown. And don’t not put in any effort thinking your inner beauty will shine through. It’s the first date…he can’t see all that yet. Obviously look good, but everything in moderation.

-Go Home: preferably at a very reasonable hour and definitely by yourself.

-Don’t kiss: …or do. I have no set rule on this one.



So what do you think? Did I miss any important ones?

D.T.R.

I don’t claim to have much insight into the inner workings of a man’s brain. Especially when it comes to relationships… or beginning a relationship…or trying to define a relationship. What men think and why they think it doesn’t always make sense to a rational person (read:woman). You see evidence of this all the time. Her profile reads in a relationship, his says single. She can’t wait to introduce him to all her friends, his friends have never heard her name. He can go months-- even years-- just hanging out, she is asking after a few dates where this is heading. She's trying to have the D.T.R.(define the relationship), and he's having none of it.

I am not stereotypically ‘female’ when it comes to labels and such. I have been known to drag my feet a bit at times but if I had to fall on one side of the fence, I would definitely say that I prefer knowing that we are reading the same page, and that in fact we are turning pages in the same direction, at roughly the same place. I believe it is important for sanity’s sake. But men tend to have a different definition of sanity, one that believes life is easier and more enjoyable when you don’t have to “define” anything. I shake my head in wonder when one of my guy friends laments over receiving the D.T.R., that may come in the form of a face-to-face conversation, phone call, email, or text. Just when things are going perfectly in their mind, she has to screw it up and try and make sense of it all. The audacity!

So in my attempts at understanding the male mind just a little bit better, I want to know what about defining a relationship is so unpleasant. Why do you break out in a cold sweat when the conversation begins with we need to talk…. Is it an all the time occurrence or does it depend on the specific relationship in question? I realize this doesn’t apply to all men and does apply to some women so anyone and everyone is free to add their two cents as we figure out this phenomenon together.

Bumps and Bruises

I’ve experienced pain before. The countless times I sprained my ankle. My hamstring. Of course my knee has given me its fair share of issues. Even my little pinky I broke years ago put a severe hamper on the day-to-day activities. They were all very painful in their own right and a reminder of how we depend on each part of our body to feel healthy and wholesome. Let’s face it; God knew what he was doing. So I know that He is fully aware of how extremely uncomfortable I have been for the last day and a half. If I go to sit down or stand up, you’d swear I was 9 months pregnant and hiding it well. I will more than likely give myself a urinary tract infection if I continue to try and hold off using the bathroom. And trying to get a peaceful night of sleep is nearly impossible. As soon as I made the slightest adjustment I would be reminded immediately that even a centimeter or two could made a difference between comfort and misery. I even had to give up getting the front side of my legs massaged due to my inability to lie on my back without screaming in pain.

Ladies and Gentleman, please do your best to protect your tailbone. Just trust me on this one.

Imitation is the best form of flattery

Meet Bobby.





Bobby is a fellow athlete here at the Olympic Training Center. One of the first things people notice about him is his incredibly intense eyes and the way he looks at you. His eyeballs seem poised to pop out of his head at any moment and he grins as if he's the half brother of the Joker. In a good way of course...it gives him personality and makes him stand out in a crowd. It's not like he's doing it on purpose, but any time you see him you'll wonder if he's got a secret surprise he's wanting to share with you. More often than not, the answer is no. But this took me a while to figure out. I thought there must be a reason for this expression but it's simply the every day Bobby. He does catch a bit of flack for it, but it's all in good fun. So much fun in fact, that last Saturday as a group of us got together at the local dive bar, we took turns doing our best "Bobby" impersonation. The following is what we believe to be our best Bobby look. You be the judge...

1. Becky


2. Justin



3. Brianna


4. Carl


5. Jacob


6. Adam


7. Toby


8. Neely



To the best of my knowledge, Bobby does not read this blog. But if you ever do, please know that imitation is the best form of flattery and even in our best attempts, I'm not sure we did you justice.

Now vote.

A Charitable Donation

Yesterday, as I was driving home from church, I decided to make a pit stop at my favorite hole in the wall Mexican spot that sells the best breakfast burritos this side of the border. I had been craving one since the previous night, but had been too lazy to make the drive at 2 in the morning. This might have been the first time I’ve ever ate a breakfast burrito during normal breakfast hours so I was hoping they were as good as I remembered them to be.

I’ve had this large bill that has been burning a hole in my wallet for a while now and I figured that it was time to break it, since cash really doesn’t create interest sitting in my purse. So I paid for my $4 burrito and as is habit, counted the change when it was handed back to me. However, I think I must be more accustomed to seem like I’m counting money than actually making sure all the money is there. Because I counted it, and while something told me it wasn’t quite right, I stuck it in my wallet anyway. Part of the problem was I wasn’t really sure how much change I was supposed to get; so going through the motions didn’t really do me any good. And with this much change, I perhaps expected it to be counted back to me, but it was not.

So in the seconds that pass, I am thinking to myself that there is probably a discrepancy here, but I am unsure how to handle it. On the one hand I’m thinking I should take my money back out of my wallet, make sure that my kindergarten math skills haven’t failed me and prove that I did in fact get short-changed, and say something to the guy. On the other hand, I really hate to embarrass people and cause a scene. This is probably extremely irrational on my part, as it is my money and all, but I don’t want to tell him he made a mistake or call him out for purposely not giving me my change. And I really think this might be the case the more I think of it, because I did find it odd how he didn’t count my change back to me.

So as to not make the guy feel bad for stealing my money, I kept quiet. Sure, it could have just been an honest mistake, but I think somehow it makes me feel less retarded that I kept my mouth shut if I convince myself that maybe he just needed the couple extra bucks more than I did at that time. Like I did some sort of spontaneous charitable giving without even being asked. Lame, huh? And what is lamer is that I’m still thinking about it. Luckily, the breakfast burrito was thoroughly enjoyable so that partly makes up for it. And to punish myself for being a mute I have decided that I am banned from Starbucks this week to make up for the cash I should have had in my wallet still. Next time I’ll just stick to my debit card.

Possibilities

We all know I’m not seriously dating. In fact, because you all have been such phenomenal confidants over the past year, you probably would be the first to know if someone significant came into my life. I’ve told you about enough of the duds and I’d want you be able to celebrate with me once I meet my prince charming and he sweeps me off my feet; Or at least a good lookin’ frog.

Well last weekend I sent out an invitation to someone I may one day find myself interested in. There are no guarantees but it’s a possibility. And since possibilities are my bread and butter these days, I might as well give them their due. I invited him to church on Sunday. It’s not your normal date spot or the best place to get to know someone, but it can give you far more insight into a person’s character than a movie and dinner ever could.

So we went. And the other day he mentioned something to me that I haven’t been able to quite get out of my head. He told me how much he appreciated that I asked him to go with me, that he enjoyed it, and how it was his favorite time spent with me thus far. I know that really doesn’t say too much about the chemistry that may or may not be there, but I must say that I feel good about the prospect of that possibility.

Yes We Did

I realize that I should’ve posted yesterday, as probably every blogger on the face of this planet probably did. It was a historic moment for everyone and undoubtedly is a defining moment for our country. By the time I got home last night, after driving up to L.A. to vote, waiting anxiously to hear the results and the speeches that followed, and then making it back to San Diego, all I had energy for was to crawl in my bed and give in to the exhaustion. But I fell asleep with a smile on my face and a warm feeling in my heart. I am ecstatic. And while I have felt for a long time that this particular election was special and that I had a more personal investment in the outcome than ever before in my short time as a voting citizen in this country, I didn’t fully realize how emotional I would really feel.

I understand that what happens in our country and the progress we make in the next four years is yet to be seen. Right now I simply content in the hope that I feel and I am proud of this country for electing a man to become president who a little over 40 years ago barely earned the right to vote for that office. That makes me extremely proud of us and how far we have come. Even the millions of people who voted for a different outcome should be able to appreciate that progress and acknowledge the significance it holds for all of us. And now that he is our president and the person the majority of America has decided should be our leader, I would hope that everyone would give the man a chance and be optimistic about our future and try our best to be united as Americans. I mean, if Elisabeth Hasselback can support this man and be proud of what our country has accomplished, surely anyone can! (Oh, and Sherri made me cry)



P.S. I enjoy reading and experiencing what other people are feeling and thinking at this time. I didn't make this blog too long because I felt like it was still hard for me to articulate all that I feel...but I read other people's words and I want to just scream "ditto!" So if you feel like adding your two cents...please do so!