Sometimes You’re Up….
Remember last week when my daughter made All-State and I said I was going to ride this wave of euphoria as long as possible? Well… that was short. I guess the universe heard me complain about the humidity and said “Oh yeah? Let’s give her something real to complain about!” – because now we have a HURRICANE heading our way. Seriously? A hurricane in November? The next two days of school have been canceled, and in a stunning stroke of bad luck, these were probably the most eventful days of the whole year. My daughter was supposed to have an all-day rehearsal for the county jazz band, a field trip to a Holocaust museum, and then the jazz concert tomorrow night. The jazz band event has been postponed until April (April???) and the trip to the Holocaust museum is not able to be rescheduled at all. They were supposed to meet actual Holocaust survivors, which was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, because as my daughter pointed out (with her usual tact) “These people won’t be alive much longer!” Yes, the mood around here has turned grim. But I’m reminded of a line from an old Woody Allen movie, Deconstructing Harry. Billy Crystal’s character says life is like Vegas: “Sometimes you’re up, sometimes you’re down- in the end, the house always wins. Doesn’t mean you didn’t have a good time.” Yep, we’ll be up again soon. But right now I have to go. I have to get ready for a hurricane.
Passion
Today is Day #8 of NaBloPoMo and I’m also linking up with Kim and Zenaida for their Tuesday Topics! Last year on the first day of NaBloPoMo, I published a post called “Why Do You Run?” I shared my running story- how I hated my body so much in high school, started running my senior year in a “special” PE class, and how that began my transition to a healthier self-image and acceptance of my body. That’s why I started running, and grew to love it. But why do I run now? Well… You always hear about people quitting their tedious 9-5 jobs in order to “pursue their passion” and give life more meaning. But what if you did it the other way around? Pursued your passion, as far as it could possibly go, and then moved on to something you’re less passionate about? I’ve mentioned that my husband is a trumpet player, my son is a trumpet performance major in college right now, and my daughter is a flute player. But I’ve never said what I did before I became a massage therapist… I was a professional trumpet player. Like my kids, I played in my high school band. I went to summer music camp and All-State, and then went to college as a trumpet performance major. My dream was to play in a symphony orchestra. After college I moved to Florida (long story, but I was following a boyfriend) and worked as a freelance musician for five years. I played in a brass quintet, played in a ballet orchestra, and subbed in the Philharmonic. When that boyfriend and I broke up, I moved to New York City to continue pursuing a music career. I started playing shows and then worked for a company that produced Broadway shows like Evita and 42nd St. in Germany. We lived in different cities- Berlin, Hamburg, Munich- for several months at a time while we played the show. Since the producer was German, we were mostly in Germany but also played in Zurich, Vienna, and- once- played Milan and Paris. It was an amazing job. We would play eight shows a week but were otherwise free to explore the area. Mondays were off so sometimes we would take day trips to nearby cities like Prague or Copenhagen. I did this for years. At first it was fun, but as time went on I got tired of living in hotels and playing the same show over and over again. It wasn’t what I envisioned for my life when I chose a music career. I wanted an orchestra job, but the truth was, I wasn’t good enough. Most people aren’t- if you look at the number of players coming out of school and the number of positions open in a symphony orchestra, only the very, very best even have a chance of playing at the top level. I had some issues with my playing that were holding me back. I had been trying to correct them for years but reality was setting in. I had gotten as far as it was possible for me to go. It was at this point that I met my husband- we were playing the same show (West Side Story.) He also was looking to change his life, so at the end of that tour we moved to Florida, got married and hoped to start a family. I knew trumpet playing was done for me- continuing to struggle with a freelance career wasn’t appealing- and I wanted to train for something else. But I was 35 years old and didn’t feel like I had much time to spend on it because I wanted to get pregnant as quickly as possible. So I picked something I had a mild interest in, and that you could get a license for fairly quickly- massage therapy. I got my massage therapy license and had my kids. I work as a massage therapist to earn money, but the focus of my life for the last twenty years has been my family. I’ve never grumbled (much) at the sacrifices raising kids entails, because I had my adventures when I was younger. I got to travel and have an incredible time, and even though my career wasn’t what I originally dreamed of, it had its shining moments. Now my kids are older and I’m realizing this phase of my life will also be over. It won’t be that long before they’re both on their own. I like being a massage therapist, but I don’t love it. It’s not my “passion.” You know that feeling where, at the end of the day, that thought creeps into your head; “Is this all there is? Shouldn’t there be something else?” My husband now teaches band to beginners and middle schoolers, and although there’s a lot of complaining (“I never wanted to be a band director!”) he also still plays the trumpet. Last week he played with a jazz combo and came home glowing- “This is what it’s all about!” I don’t have that anymore, but I have running. Running is my “something else,” the thing that transcends the ordinariness of everyday life. We all need something… or something else. Is your job your passion? Or do you have something else in your life to fill that need?
What Did You Do With the Extra Hour?
Every year when we turn the clocks back people have all sorts of great suggestions like, continue to get up at the old time, giving yourself an extra hour in the morning to start some sort of new habit, like exercising or journaling! Or, earmark the extra hour for something specific like decluttering the house or some other important task. I’m wondering if anyone actually does any of those things? I definitely appreciated the extra hour, but I couldn’t tell you exactly how I spent it. Here’s a look at my “fall-back” day. I woke up at 6 am (which felt like 7) so I could run and get home in time to watch the NYC Marathon. As soon as I sat down on the couch, my snuggly calico (Muffin) came and sat on my lap. So cute! After the marathon, I did my Sunday grocery shopping, and then it was time for the Dolphins/Bears game! During halftime I baked a cake, and after the game my daughter helped me decorate it. She had requested a “cookies and cream” cake, and it was pretty easy- I basically made a vanilla cake and added Oreos to the cake batter and frosting. I’ve been slow to get the Halloween decorations down, but suddenly in the middle of the afternoon I got really tired of them. In a burst of energy, I got them all down and replaced with Thanksgiving. We ended up having our nachos for dinner. We were going to have them during the Dolphins game, but my husband suddenly decided he needed to go vote today (he’s unpredictable like that.) Here was our nachos dinner: And here’s how the inside of the cake looked! My sister asked me how I can bake a cake like that and not eat it. Well, I’m a recovering sugar-holic. Or you could call me an “abstainer.” I ate way too much sugar for way too many years, and finally had to cut myself off completely. I don’t miss it- or rather, I don’t miss the constant battle and stress it used to cause me. I don’t need to try the cake- I know what it tastes like. The evening was spent on blog work, laundry, cleaning, some Sunday Night Football… the usual puttering around before a new week starts. In other words, I had a really nice day. I know turning the clocks back is not easy for some people. When my kids were little, I would literally rant for days about how much I hated it, and oh yes- I used to threaten to ignore the time change- “I’ll just sync up with everyone again in the spring,” ha ha. And I know it’s hard with pets too… my sister’s elderly cat with hyperthyroidism will now need her breakfast at 4:30 am (eek!) I also know a lot of people don’t like the early evening darkness… but I prefer the morning daylight. So I’m happy! Until spring comes and we have to turn the clocks ahead- I don’t like that day as much. Did you have a nice day? Did you do anything special with that extra hour?
Weekly Rundown- Oh, the Humidity!
Okay, seriously- it’s November. We’re still seeing temperatures in the upper 80s, but worse than that is the humidity. 80 degrees and 95% humidity at 6 am? Not cool, Universe. But we persevered, because that’s what we do here in South Florida. As always, I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for this weekly rundown. I’m also joining San and a small army of NaBloPoMo-ers who are posting every day for the month of November. Let’s just see how the week played out. Sunday I’m happy to report that my long run is back up to double digits! I went to my favorite trail and got started as early as I could in an attempt to beat the heat… The plan was 10 miles and I went 10.5, only because it was hard to get back to the start at exactly 10 miles. That’s okay- I’ll run an extra half mile! Monday Back to Caroline Girvan! I’m working my way through her Iron Series on Youtube. Last week I was babying a sore muscle on my side, around my ribs. That still hurts, but I decided I had to get on with my life so I did Day #17, which was a complete upper body workout. The only thing I had to modify were the tricep dips, but that’s okay- Caroline gives alternatives to those anyway, and this workout was still a tricep killer. Tuesday 3 mile run, followed by plyometrics and Planksgiving! Okay, I’m not really doing Planksgiving. There are all sorts of challenges going on this month, and all I’m doing is one forearm plank every day- and sometimes I can’t even remember to do that. But I did it today, woohoo! Wednesday Since it was my day off, I dropped my daughter at school and continued on to the park to run on the trail there. It was hot and humid at 8 am, but it was nice to run in the daylight and not have to rush. I ran 5 miles and did my plyometrics in the park. After my run I did several errands, including going to VOTE! Thursday Back to Caroline Girvan- Day #18 was glutes. In the beginning of this workout she explains that there would be some bodyweight exercises interspersed with the weights, and I thought, “Bodyweight! That’s going to be too easy!” Hahahahahaha… when will I learn not to underestimate Caroline Girvan? Towards the end of this workout we were doing single leg hip thrusts, no weights, and I could not make it through the set- but Caroline also stops to rest during sets sometimes so I didn’t feel too bad. Friday Another 3 mile run that started in the pitch dark and ended as the sun was coming up. Followed by plyometrics and plank! Saturday Off! A day off on Saturday is still working out really well for me. I get to sleep in a little, but then go to work where I’m pretty active so I don’t end up feeling too blah. Sunday On tap for today- no long run. I decided to make this a cutback week. Not that I’ve been running that much, but I have been steadily increasing my mileage and like to pull it back every once in a while. Instead I’ll run 5 miles, then watch the NYC marathon. In the afternoon we’ll be watching the Dolphins/Bears game and eating nachos (don’t forget it’s National Nachos Day!) and I also said I’d make a cake for my daughter. Oh wait- I also have to take down the Halloween decorations- good thing we have that extra hour! So, it was a pretty good week. I’m kind of bummed I only did two strength workouts, but in order for me to do three (or four) I need to double up with strength and running on some days, and there was too much else going on this week. That’s okay- we start all over again tomorrow. How was your week? Are you having unseasonably warm weather? Do you like turning the clocks back? – I love it, but will be complaining when we have to spring ahead!