Tag: self-expression

10k

Do our run, get an event shirt that’s retail value is only one dollar less than your entry fee. Eat some bananas and RX Bars and churros after the finish line. Do our free yoga class afterward to stretch yourself out, and take the $88 mat you used home for free.

Not bad, lululemon. Not bad at all for your first effort at a run in Houston. We accept ad we thank you for the event.

P.S. My man got himself the fastest time he’s ever gotten on a 10k today, and he didn’t even prep. He signed up late, did a two-mile run earlier this week, and hoped for the best in his shorts, tank top, light sweater thing, and gloves in the sudden near-freezing temperatures. And he did his best, quite literally. Super proud of him, and grateful to have him be with me in this beautiful, wonderful, awe-inspiring life.

Post-a-day 2022

Cold

Usually, by morning, the ice in my YETI tumbler – no lid – is long gone, with only a hint of cold to the water still in it. Sometimes, when I go to bed earlier, the water is barely cool by morning. Today, however, even with the heat on in the house, as I am going to bed at nearly 11pm, there is still a huge chunk of ice sitting in my tumbler from last night… clearly, it has gotten cold here.

I whipped out my ski pants and winter coat and wool beret and SmartWool socks – and I even tested those in my tennis shoes – to wear tomorrow morning for this run. My man is running in it, and I am volunteering for it. I am so glad I had the karate thing at the park this morning, so I was clear on what was warm enough and what wasn’t. (Three layers of pants was okay, as were three layers on top, including a casual winter coat. The warmer socks were nowhere near enough. The cotton knit beanie made all the difference.) So, I think I’m ready for the weather tomorrow, which will be even colder than it was today – today was 41/5, but tomorrow morning is forecasted as 39/4 degrees. Since I’ll be doing a lot of standing around outside, possibly even in the wind, I think the winter costa Ms ski pants are a good move. My man, however, might not have the right gear for his run… the plan at present is for him to wear high socks and a warm top and gloves, plus a pair of sweatpants that he’ll pass off to me just before he starts off… We certainly shall see how that goes, shan’t we? 😛

Say a prayer for us, if you don’t mind, please. Keep us safe and appropriately warm, God. Amen.

Post-a-day 2022

Holy Mary, Mother of God

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us, sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Tonight just feels like the right kind of night to pray… just to pray.

Oh, my love and my life, God, may your will be done. Help us to pursue your will fully, and grant us the courage, purpose, grace, and ease to fulfill it. In your name, I pray. Amen.

Post-a-day 2022

P.S. Happy Veterans’ Day, and thank you to all who have given themselves in service to the safety and livelihoods of others.

Juice Cleanse

“How are you feeling today?
I’m feeling dreadful. My stomach hurts, I off and on feel like I might vomit, and my body is miserable.
Talk about detox.”

We have been eating loads of junk we don’t usually eat, mostly because of the season – candy (Halloween), pumpkin pie (Fall), eggnog (almost Winter), pizza (because we get it at Costco, where we get the pumpkin pie), and chocolate milk (because we’re already drinking the eggnog, which is dairy!). So, we determined that a juice cleanse was in order. And we started it today. And I have never had such a struggle with a juice cleanse in my life as I had today. Goodness, I felt dreadful. And I also was freezing all day long… and I might have actually had a fever… :/ Like I said, it was rough today.

Post-a-day 2022

Opera

It’s just so dramatic… Of course they both died at the end, to be forever in their love through death, as they sacrificed themselves to save her husband, whom she never really liked or loved, but who was going to die rather than reveal her secret to the world.

And of course the show used real fire for the bonfire-beacon on the stage and threw real massive buckets of water onto the stage to show the tide crashing into the cave where the two lovers were now ball-and-chained to die by drowning with the tide rising. Very cool effect from each.

And of course we both snoozed for st least part of the show – how can one not with such lulling music in a dark space with a cozy chair, holding the hand of one one loves?

I just love opera.

Post-a-day 2022

Sometimes…

Sometimes, life just feels really sucky.

And that’s completely okay. Truly, it is. Just allow it to be exactly as it is, and embrace it for itself. Treat it exactly the same as moments of awesomeness and joy, and they are all merely sort of life and can teach us something at every step… even when they suck.

You can do this, Banana… truly, you can.

Post-a-day 2022

I can ride my bike

… with handlebars, thank you very much.

And, tomorrow, I shall. It will be the Houston Park-to-Port bicycle ride from a main park in the city, Hermann Park, to the Port of Houston. It will be a great event, and I am stoked to be doing it both with my mom, again, and my man, for the first time. Yay!

Thank you, God. Please, keep us safe and able all throughout tomorrow. In your name, I pray. Amen.

Post-a-day 2022

Distractions? Oder Directions?

*oder – (German) or

These beautiful and wonderful things keep coming up. I am grateful for each and every one of them. However, they have rather kept me from pursuing the main goal I had to pursue, now that my teaching position has ended: coding. I had set myself up for this path toward coding, and the main resource has been delayed, and I haven’t reached out yet to the secondary resource, because I’ve been so busy managing the tutoring that’s come up, along with the part-time job work and the other part-time job work and the tidying and catching up on things at home…

Have these things been coming up because they are distractions, requiring me to prove my dedication and desire to pursue this goal of coding right now? Or are they actually directions from God and the Universe, answering my prayers for clear guidance, showing me that diving fully into the coding is not what they need me to do right now?

God, help me to follow your will fully. In your name, I pray. Amen.

Post-a-day 2022

Stepping out

Sometimes, it’s really hard for me to go out, to go to new places or just typical could-be-dirty-type places. Sometimes, it’s not very big of a deal. Tonight, I was excited about the idea of going to one place – a clean place in my mind. Then, the excitement transferred to a new idea of watching the baseball game somewhere nearby over drinks, instead of and after the meeting with drinks farther away. As we got into details of where this other place would be, I started to struggle a bit. It became something that I wanted to do for my man, much more so than for myself or for us to have fun. I found pleasure in the idea mostly out of his desire to go out and do something, to be somewhere that isn’t home, doing something relaxing and enjoyable.

So, I asked my brother if he and his wife were interested, and they almost immediately joined the plan. I made it clear that finding a place was on them, though without being rude or mean. My man recommended two spots, and my brother picked one. Once my man finished with his meeting across town, we headed to join my brother and sister-in-law at the selected patio bar place. I was only a little scared about it all, and it proved to be very reasonable a place, with clean amenities, even at night (I’d been there once during the day already). I enjoyed my time there with my family, and I’m glad we went. Hopefully, my man and my brother both got the relaxation and bit of fun and variation they likely both were needing tonight, my man especially.

God, grant them both blessed refreshing sleep tonight, please, that they be best prepared to pursue and fulfill your will in their lives tomorrow. In your name, I pray. Amen.

Post-a-day 2022