November Coffee Date!
Guess what time it is? Time for the Starbucks holiday cups! AND, it’s November, which means I’m joining San and our intrepid crew for NaBloPoMo; AND, it’s the first Friday of the month, which means it’s time to join Coco and Deborah for the Ultimate Coffee Date. Phew! Best Friday ever. If we were having coffee together, the first thing I’d tell you is that I’m NOT drinking my normal Earl Grey tea. Instead I’m drinking what I like to call a “poor man’s chai tea latte.” The regular chai tea latte from Starbucks is delicious, but so sugary. This is what I do instead: have them make a tea with their chai tea bags, steamed soymilk, and two packets of stevia. Yum! The next thing I would talk about is the update to my race in February. You might remember I had a hard time choosing a winter race, but finally settled on the Forgotten Florida 50 Mile.. I didn’t originally want a 50 miler- I was looking for a 50k- but this race sounded so incredible I couldn’t resist. Well, first we found out the date has been changed- then we got an email announcing that this year’s race will be the last one. The race goes through Seminole Ranch and Tosohatchee Wildlife Management Areas, and they have decided not to allow any running on their trails after this race. Wow- I’m SO GLAD I picked this race and didn’t save it for another year, because there will be no “other years.” It also occurs to me that if I get injured during this training cycle and can’t run, I will never be able to run this race- it’s now or never. The stakes are high this time. Switching gears! The first week of November has special meaning for our family, as it’s “All-State Results Week.” A couple months ago I mentioned that my daughter was auditioning for the jazz band on guitar, and the concert band on flute. She had the bold notion that she was going to get into the jazz band, even though they only take one guitar FROM THE ENTIRE STATE, and she’s just a freshman. I felt she was making a mistake by prioritizing her practice time on guitar, and not working hard enough on flute (she made the middle school all-state band on flute last year.) Well… she didn’t make the jazz band. But she did make the concert band on flute!!! Apparently she knew what she was doing all along, and I should just shut up from now on. The first thing she said when we got the results was “I’m so relieved.” She would have been very sad not to make all-state at all. And the second thing she said was “Maybe I can make the jazz band next year.” The dream lives on. This means we will be going to Tampa again in early January! I had so much fun last year, so I’m very excited about this. What would you tell me over coffee? Do you like the Starbucks holiday cups? Does this Forgotten Florida race sound fun to you? Or are you like my husband and can’t imagine running on trails? If you have kids, do they play a band instrument? Did you play in your high school band?