Monday, July 20, 2009

"I Believe...What Do You Believe?"

Tuesdays kick off my training week with a short session (usually 3-4 miles) and every step gets me closer to the big Saturday challenge.  This week that challenge was 10 miles!  10 miles!  10 miles takes about 3 hours to complete, 2 bathroom and stretch breaks, 100 ounces of water (hence the 2 bathroom breaks), one granola bar, one apple, and 21,333 steps!  10 miles feels great! 

10 miles is 50% of the first day of the actual 3-Day event.  On Friday morning we will have an opening ceremony and then take on 20 miles before we arrive at camp.  I’m halfway there! 

Things got tough around mile 8.  Prior to Saturday, 8 miles was the most I had done in one training session.  To push through the last 2 miles I tested my memory and tried to name the 31 donations I have received so far.  31 friends and family have made donations to support Breast Cancer research and to help me secure the $2300 required for participation in this event.  It was a tearful final 2 miles-but I did manage to name you all!! 

New names on the list this week include co-worker and neighbor Shana Harrison who has promised to take a walk with me once she finishes summer school! Another fellow Gamecock, Michelle Burcin, showed her support.  Michelle has been cheering me on a lot lately and is my model for healthy behaviors. The Anderson Family, including Aunt Julie & Grammy and Pop Pop, are cheering Aunt Jenn along (it’s okay to talk in 3rd person when you share a love for the Anderson kiddos like we do).  I especially appreciate Julie for making not only a financial gift but for passing down her energy boosters from her own marathon training last year.  I added some energy beans to the weekend line up and it made a huge difference!  Joan and Barry McLendon, my favorite “throw down” friends from Johnston County, and Kate Byrne, my high school side kick (and the unnamed spandex partner in my marching band photo-see July 6th blog) added their gifts to the list.

I have only $755 left to reach the walking minimum!  I am confident I can get there! 

I have added a few audio books to my iPod to help keep me company on my walks.  I am enjoying the first edition of This I Believe.  For my non NPR listening friends (shame on you!) This I Believe began as a 1950s radio program during which Edward Murrow would ask folks to share a short story about their beliefs.  NPR picked this up 4 years ago and asked folks, famous and common, to share their essays. Selected essays have since been compiled into two editions of a book.  All of them can be found on the NPR website: http://thisibelieve.org/

The purpose of the This I Believe project is to have folks elaborate on a personal belief.  Most of the essays are quite philosophical.  Margaret Mead discussed human destiny; Jackie Robinson reflected on his battles with racism in the sport of baseball; the sister of a murdered 17-year old Hispanic man issued caution to other youth about the dangers of gangs.  I don’t have the eloquence to offer insights such as these (I missed the Blarney Stone on my visit to Ireland) but I do have lots of time on my hands as I walk. Many of you ask me what I think about during the 8-10 hours of walking I do each week.  On my walks this week, I found myself making a list of the things that I believe.  This is not the first time I have thought about this prompt: "What do you believe?"  Curtis Z asked this question of me and every new freshman at FSU nightly for 2 summers (http://www.curtiszimmerman.com/itemInfo.cfm?itemID=186).  Cher asked us all.  I thought I’d share my thoughts-not deep or profound-but the things that come to mind as I walk. 

  • The color pink is growing on me. 
  • Vegetables aren’t so bad after all-except brussel sprouts.  I draw the line at brussel sprouts.
  • The best weekend begins with leaving work at 2pm, Taking off on a road trip-snack bag packed with orange slices and peanut butter M&Ms (Not the pnut kind, peanut butter-right SaJo?), on an adventure to see live music and visit old friends.
  • Puppy breath should be bottled and sold as air freshener.
  • A parade is magical!  Any parade:  The 3:00pm parade at the Magic Kingdom, a Gay Pride parade, the nightly parade of costumes that the kids I used to babysit would perform between bath time and bed time, the Macy’s parade on Thanksgiving morning which, for the Latino family, always signals the beginning of the holiday season…ANY parade!  You name it, a parade = F-U-N!
  • That “Passion supersedes natural ability, every time!” –Curtis Zimmerman  **That one has gotten me and will get us over the physical challenges of this event.
  • That switching to a Mac was the best decision I ever made toward making myself a more efficient worker.  I also believe it will, in the long run, cost me many more $$ to maintain this preference than my PC friends.
  • In saying I Love You before you hang up the phone.
  • That speeding in a school zone should be punishable by jail time.  Slow it down, folks!
  • In doing two things every day:  1.  Laugh!  2.  Break a sweat!  Both will contribute to your overall wellness in more ways than any multivitamin or low fat diet. 
  • That the daily “Welcome Home” greeting from Riley can cure whatever ails me!
  • In a junk free house.  No knick knacks or chotchkies cluttering the shelves or table tops.  However, one full shelf in my garage is reserved for Jimmy Buffet concert gear and paraphernalia. THAT is totally acceptable!
  • People are not for hitting.
  • Boom Boom Pow can put the pep back in your step at the 5.75 mile mark!
  • Watermelon is the perfect image of summer and should be consumed daily from mid June-August.
  • Every season that THIS will be the time that the Bachelor/Bachelorette will find true love.  I’m wrong every time-except 1-and I still watch, and believe.
  • In eating Al Fresco whenever possible!  Next time the host asks, “Would you like a table inside or outside?”  Answer, “Outside.”  It’s worth the extra 10 minutes you may have to wait. 
  • That the New Kids on the Walk will create memories on October 23-25, 2009 that we will never forget!  I believe our friends and family will make it possible!

What do you believe?? *Feel free to comment here or send your “Believe” statement to me. 

Our training this week is the same as last week.  Bring on the 10 mile Saturday!  I believe I can do it!

Miles this week:  24 Steps taken:  51,694

Total Miles:  130  Total Steps taken:  275,025

Thanks for reading!

Jenn L.

1 comment:

  1. I believe you need to try our version of brussel sprouts...blackened in olive oil with a lot of pepper. They're pretty good.

    ReplyDelete