A Letter To the Person I Was A Year Ago

Dear Self One Year Ago,

We meet again. In fact we've been together and more in tune and balanced with one another this past year than ever before. And when I say "we've" I refer to me as I am now and me as I was a year ago. One year. Three hundred and sixty-five days. Fifty-two weeks. Twelve months. 8,760 hours. 525,000 minutes. 31,536,000 seconds. Self, I have so much to tell you.

Revving Up the OCR

In triathlon there are three major components: Swim. Bike. Run. It seems pretty obvious, no? The most obvious for the bike portion is you need a bike. While I have seen people out on Cruisers with wicker baskets right alongside competitors with several thousand dollar Triathlon specific bikes, I fall somewhere in between. I ride a bike. It's not my bike. The bike is on loan. The bike gets the job done. The bike has been sworn at. The bike has been mocked. Combined the bike and I get the job done. Period. Thanks, OCR.

It's Not A Rant ... It's A Reality

A friend recently shared 10 Things Not to Say to A Triathlete. I'm still new to the culture, the sport, the community, the whole process. What I will say is that despite my only being into Triathlon for 8 months now, in that 8 months I've heard things. I've heard things, I've rolled my eyes, I've tried to defend, and then I just think "Yeah, no I am wasting my time here."

The Kindness of Strangers

I lived in the South for a decade or so. Now we're not talking deep south where I said "Well, bless your heart", but then again I thought of saying that a couple of times when I came across people. We are talking South in the sense that people knew I wasn't from around there. In fact, having had stints in Orlando, Florida, Carbondale, Illinois, Marion, Illinois, and Durham, North Carolina ... one very important thing I learned is that I have a Chicago accent. And just as soon as I figure out what that actually is ... I'll get back to ya'll on it. See what I did there, huh? Bless my heart, right?

Re-Committing

Don't let the title fool you. I've not fallen on the wayside, lost my way, or given up. In fact, I can pretty proudly say just the opposite: I've stayed on track and then some.

This re-commitment goes back to the beginning; or near the beginning, but definitely the beginning of this year for sure. The first race I trained for was the Commitment Day 5k on January 1st of this year. Will and I ran side by side, him finishing one second ahead of me; literally.

Taking OWS One Wave At A Time

As I've mentioned before, growing up I never really did more than step foot into Lake Michigan; literally. Now as I continue on my unexpected journey I've survived twice of not only stepping foot into Lake Michigan, but also putting my face in, breathing air out, and swimming through Lake Michigan.

I Got My Rear In Gear

Family isn't necessarily defined by blood. It's defined by choice, by your heart and feelings. Growing up I was not fortunate enough to have cousins nearby, in fact my cousins all lived more than a dozen hours away. We'd visit in the summer on vacation for a week or so, but that part of my family with Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins were in a different state, in a different region. I was fortunate to grow up with an extended family that filled the void.