The Top 5 Ups & Downs of Winter.

I always find myself complaining about winter. It’s cold, windy, grey, cold…. But really, there are some good things that come along with it… ahem, not sure what.. so I’ll probably end this post on a positive note once I find good things to say about winter. In the mean time… here’s my top 5 reasons why I’m not a fan of Old Man Winter:

• Getting out of your nice warm bed in the morning. IMPOSSIBLE. Sometimes I wake up and find my nose to be cold… The warm bed is always so much more inviting than that cold tile floor in the bathroom. And speaking of cold tile floors, I feel like getting out of a hot shower in the winter falls under this category. Shaved legs? Nope, already got goose bumps and can feel my hair growing again. It’s like regrowing my hair as quickly as possible is my body’s defense mechanism to stay warm. Sometimes, when I’m reaallllyy cold, I sneak out of the shower with the water still running so that the steam keeps heating the bathroom.
• Driving. You gotta take your time in the winter. Depending on how much snow there is, sometimes you have to add a good 30 minutes to get wherever you’re going. That’s kind of annoying. Even the slightest amount of slippery snow on the ground take a little too fast will result in your car spinning out of control down the road. That’s the part where you PRAY no one else is driving towards you. (…not that I know from experience or anything). And with driving, comes the responsibility of scraping your car. I don’t know about you all, but I love waking up an extra 20 minutes early to spend quality time with my car, scraping it in the frigid early morning hours. And to mention when your door freezes shut overnight. THEN WHAT? That’s what trunks are for, to get into your car when you can’t get in via the door. ugh.
• The wind. Enough said… I think that’s really what makes winter so cold… apart from the freezing temperatures, of course.
• Winter makes me feel cooped up. I mean, I still can get outside and go for a run, but it doesn’t quite have that same appeal as it does on a sunny, 70 degree day, ya know? I do a lot more sitting in my bed wrapped in a blanket than in the summer. I like to get outside whenever I can!
• The fact that I have to wear pants. Winter means pants. I hate wearing pants.

 

 

And now, as promised, the good.

• That first snow of the year. It’s always exciting to see the big, fat flakes falling from the sky. I actually forget about the cold that’s coming and truly enjoy it. It’s pretty. I will admit. Right as soon as the snow falls, it’s like a gentle blanket covering the earth. Once you add in the salt and slush and footprints, well that’s a different story.
• HOT CHOCOLATE. nom nom and all of those other delicious warm drinks that come with the winter season.
• Running in the snow. It’s fun to get outside and get fresh air in the winter after being caged inside all the time. It’s kind of a pain to get dressed and put on all the clothes, but it is always worth it. Plus I get to appreciate the beauty of all the snow.
• Sitting inside by a fireplace reading a book or watching a movie. HOW ENJOYABLE.
• Sledding, skiing, snowball fights, building snowmen/ snow forts.

Okay, so maybe winter really isn’t that bad after all. Sorry for being such a pessimist. Won’t happen anymore, promise. : )

 

 

And so the fun begins.

waahoooooooo. got my training schedule for Nationals in April. This will include a lot of fun things like 2 a day work outs, quality time with the Black Beauty (even if it is on a trainer..ick), lots of running, and… the dreaded swimming.
Now the tricky thing about 2 a day work outs is that you usually have to do one in the morning and one in the evening. That means I have to pry myself out of bed when it’s still pitch black outside to go exercise. It’s totally worth it… when I can get up. Once I’m up, I’m good. But you know, that snooze button ALWAYS seems to win. It’s frustrating. If anyone has any words of wisdom on how to get up in the morning to work out instead of roll over and sleep an extra hour, let me know! I’ve even tried sleeping with my running clothes on…. no success. Despite the fact that it will be a lot of work, I’m really looking forward to training again and put forth the effort and seeing results. I really would rather not have a repeat of last year’s Nationals race… we… won’t get into that.

Speaking of other fun things beginning.. it’s my second semester of my senior year of college. I’m old. or getting there I guess. Okay, not really. Just the other day I was called, “sweetie” and “sunshine” instead of “ma’am.” It was kind of a relief My mom has these sayings… “Old only gets older!” and “You’re only as young as you feel!” which are both kind of contradictory, but hey, they’re both pretty good pieces of advice. I guess I should just enjoy this semester as much as possible, especially since I’m only going to be here for a short 7 weeks.

I wish life would just put the brakes on a little bit right now. I’m not ready to be done with college and be responsible for 50 young minds on a daily basis. I know I’ve said this before.. but maybe I should just open up a cupcake shop. My dad always seemed to shoot that idea down… I can’t imagine why

Sorry for the heavy thoughts up there… this is a big, exciting, scary year! Student teaching, turning another year older, getting a job, moving out… not knowing where I’m going… askd;aeiosdklea

Ah yes, and a health update. For those of you who have never had kidney stones, they are very painful. I would say it’s like a combination of the feeling you have when giving birth (or so I would imagine) and trying not to vomit at the same time. AWFUL. then you have to drink water all the time so you have to pee 24/7 into this special toilet. I went to get my prescription filled and was told that my insurance wouldn’t cover it because it’s a “man’s medicine.” KIDNEY STONES CAN HAPPEN TO FEMALES TOO. I’ve decided my insurance company is sexist. “That’s kind of awkward, sweetie.” Thanks, Ma… This is just too much! I just want all parts to be back to functioning normally, including this sore throat/cough/cold mix that I’ve had since the 1st of the year. I’m thinking hibernation would actually kind of be beneficial considering the malfunctions my body has on a regular basis. Kidding.

Oh and happy 55 degrees on January 16. That’s not weird at all Illinois… cyaaa later snow!