Scattered Update

Life is a weird grey area right now. I'm happy but I'm not. I want to stay but I want to go. I want to do everything but I want to do nothing. All at the same time.

Health issues are keeping me out of training right now. I've been exploring some gentle alternatives that I can do with what little energy I seem to have. Yoga is my bff right now. It's not the same as running strongman implements and I miss lifting heavy. I miss having a solid workout. I know I should go to the doc, but I've been through this for years. Every time we come back to it "likely" being IBS and you just have to manage it and figure out your trigger foods. And minimize your stress.  Oh, yeah, okay. Let me just take a vacation from life. (Insert middle finger emoji here)

And so....I've retreated to reading. Volumes of poetry. Books on Buddhism and meditation and Zen. Memoirs of travel and adventure. Words and words and words until I doze out on the couch or in bed. And still I want more.

I am insatiable. In every facet.

There's more happening, but I'm not ready to delve into that chaos just yet.

This weekend, I took Friday off work and went camping with man friend and his friends. Friday night, I fell asleep in my hammock for a few hours while the fellas played guitar and chatted around the campfire. It was brilliant. We spent the weekend sweaty and dirty, washing off by playing in Lake Huron. We cooked meals over the campfire and I ate s'mores until I thought my teeth would fall right out of my head from all the sugar. We had drinks and played euchre late into the night and stole deals and hands from opponents left and right. It was a great weekend away. I am content with that.

Even if I have been ingesting ginger like it's going out of style and living off the blandest foods possible now. Damned if I do and damned if I don't so I may as well occasionally enjoy things that'll piss off my stomach anyway.

This week is the lead up to Midsummer Valkyrie. It's going to be a good time. I'm so excited to have everyone there again. It's a smaller contest than December was, but I expect this next December one to be just as big as the last. The final week is interesting. Prepping last minute details, finalizing shirts and awards and the flow of the contest. And fielding last minute questions and people dropping from the contest. Being a promoter is a lot of work. But so very, very worth it. I love doing it and am already throwing ideas around for the next. Mostly, I'm pumped for some truck pull. Woot!

I started this with the intent to focus on one topic. And then I ended up scattered. I can't settle my brain onto one topic, but it seems a shame to delete the whole thing. So I leave you all with this mess of a post. Something coherent will be incoming soon, I promise.

Love <3

The Great Outdoors

I've been starting to make good on my desire to get the hell outside. Last weekend I went out and about on my own. I'd had plans to hike with a friend, but she was hit with a migraine and had to back out. So the next day, I took my happy self out all on my own and enjoyed some nature time. It was lovely. And much needed.

So this weekend, I'd already set aside the time to meet up with Jessie and Brogan to possibly camp, but to at least day hike. After a truly awful, stressful week (both personally and in the larger world sense), I made a decision to get a hedgie sitter and stay the night out in Grand Rapids. I peeled myself out of bed on Saturday (let's talk about scheduling a "sleep in" day soon) and cruised on out. It was a beautiful morning and I genuinely enjoy long drives alone. It gives me time to do a little car karaoke and contemplate life.

After arriving and hopping around with the dogs a bit - our traditional Hello Dance - Jessie and I got our stuff together and changed to hike. Unfortunately, Brogan was feeling some nagging pain from training and wasn't able to come out with us. So we opted to go out to the ski area and investigate some of the mountain bike trails. They had hiked trails on the other part of the area the weekend before, so Jessie wanted to explore some new territory. It was all new woods to me, so I was content with wherever she chose. We hopped into her Jeep and enjoyed a doors-off ride out of town. Every time I get in her Jeep I start to long for one of my own......as I lean out the door with my face in the wind like a dog.

After roaming slightly aimlessly to find the trail head, we wandered on into the woods. Jessie taught me her ancient mountain bike tracking skills, in which she can tell me which way we should be going on the trail by the direction of the tread. Orrrr maybe she glanced at the signs. But I prefer to believe she's the bike whisperer. Thank goodness, she can stick her ear to the ground and listen for the rumble of nearby tires if we get lost.

Jessie was smart and camel-backed her water

It was a gorgeous day for a hike. Not ridiculously hot or humid. It was a bit cloudy here and there, and once the sun came out fully we were under the big green canopy. Perfect. Beautiful. Day. We even walked around a pond that looked like it came out of some prehistoric jungle.

Found the primordial ooze

After working our way down and out through the far loop, we hiked it back toward the main trail area. We had packed in our hammocks and a handy tube-shaped cooler (Thanks to my monthly Cairn box!) of cold beverages and had been scouting for the perfect hang out spot. Of course, then we saw this:

Now, you know such a polite sign must be holding the key to the perfect hammock spot. So we explored further and found it!

What's that Lassie?! The hammocks found a home?!

So then this happened:

The pano shot at the top of this page is from this point. We just hung out, had a beverage, joked, talked serious topics, joked some more, and generally took in the peace and quiet around us. We ended up swaying in the breeze for nearly 2 hours. It was exactly what I needed - what we both needed, I think. The world is simple out in the woods. The rest of the world is a shit show right now, but it doesn't exist out there. 

Today I went and trained. I didn't want to. But I did it. And I actually bumped up my numbers, even after being sick all last week and not training at all. I really am excited to compete again, but not feeling well and battling whatever has been up with my stomach is not making me feel very motivated. 

Next Friday is ground school, the next step toward skydiving solo. I'm super pumped for it, though that evening is all "classroom time" and a test. So let's all hope that the weather holds out later in the weekend so I can go jump with instructors. 

Other than that.....I'm busy planning. Planning for Burma in the fall. Tickets are booked and now it's time for the fun details. Planning camping and hiking a lot more for this summer. Looking at hiking challenges and getting myself out into some new spaces. I'd expound more at this point, but I'm tired from the weekend and ready to go cozy myself into bed. Hope you're all busy planning your next adventure too.