Day 26

Day 26 - A picture of something that means a lot to you

Why was this one so hard for me? I've been thinking about this post for two days! I have to admit that I think this is The Pilot's fault. He's absolutely not into "things." He doesn't do gifts and told me that he has a fantasy of getting rid of all his belongings (except his laptop) and move into a VW bus. I wasn't on board with that and told him as much before we even started talking about marriage. But I have been getting on board with his thought process. I recycle. I have worms in my basement (that's a story for another day). I gave him the ok to skip any kind of gift on our anniversary this year and on Valentine's day (a holiday I've never really cared for). SO because of all this, I'm slowing training my materialistic brain to enjoy experiences. To enjoy my friends and family more. To enjoy life instead of things. Don't get me wrong, I still love shoes and I have a love affair with Coach purses but these things don't seem to matter quite as much as they did before The Pilot.

But I still felt like to keep with the intent of the challenge, I should still post a picture of something that means a lot to me. So here it is.

My engagement ring

I still get butterflies when The Pilot takes my hand.

I told you he was an animal whisperer!

The engagement ring is a thing but it stands for so much! Maybe the diamond industry plants it into little girls' heads when they are born but to me, the engagement ring and wedding bands are a symbol of commitment to marriage. A commitment to each other. It's telling the world that my heart belongs to someone. And because of our situation and spending so much time apart, it is a constant reminder that no matter where The Pilot is and no matter where I am, I can look at my left hand an immediately remember that he loves me like crazy!

Plus, I love the fact that this isn't an ordinary ring. You already know that The Pilot is kinda "earthy." He's not that way only when it's convenient, like a lot of people (me included sometimes!). That's who his is. He understands the environmental effects of his career so he does everything he can to offset that. And when he chose the ring, it was no different.

My ring is made out of recycled platinum! The diamonds are all conflict-free. They come from a mine in Canada that certifies its mining practices are environmentally friendly. They follow strict labor practices so that they can guarantee the safety of the miners. The carbon footprint from the mines in Canada are minimal. You can read more about the company, Brilliant Earth, and their story here.

I accepted his proposal with a twisty tie before I knew anything about the real eco-friendly ring. He could have put a candy ring on my finger and I would have still said yes. Because I love him and can't wait to become Mrs. Pilot! ;)

Photos taken by the amazing Angie Cope!

Day 25

Day 25 - A picture of your day

It started off with one cat sulking because The Pilot is away. I'm convinced that this one doesn't love me anymore because he seems sad when The Pilot is on a trip. As I was trying to leave the house, he was staring at the closed front door....probably waiting for The Pilot to come home.

Then I sat for the next 9 hours and tried to tackle this pile of work. That and make my way through the never ending email. It's so bad that I'm reading a book called Taming the E-mail Beast. They don't teach you to deal with 100+ emails a day when you are in school!

Then I made a grocery run. I didn't take any pictures because I was embarrassed that I bought that much food at once. In my defense though, I can't remember the last time I made a decent food run. I HATE the grocery and limp along with a couple quick trips into the store to pick up a few things. So between that and whatever The Pilot gets on his trips to the expensive organic store, I avoid making the "big" stock up trip to the store for as long as possible. After eating PB & J for a couple days, I decided it was time to make the trip. I'm still scratching my head wondering how I possibly spent so much money.

Anyhooooo....now I'm typing up this blog and I have some company. This little girl loves attention and cuddles. I don't give her nearly as much attention as The Pilot does though. So to get my attention, she does her best to block the screen and chase the curser around the screen. It's a good thing she's cute!


I know all of you will rest easy tonight knowing what I did today. This is the exciting life of a 30-something career woman. I would certainly be calling myself a crazy cat lady if it weren't for The Pilot!

New Bloggy Look!

I've been blogging for about 8 months now (posts prior to August 2010 were copied over from my previous TNT fundraising web sites) so I decided it was time to create a new look for my blog. No more standard blog templates for me! I wasted....err...spent way too much time working on this but I think it turned out pretty fun! Especially since I decided to include my random thoughts about my whole life and not just my marathon/triathlon/coaching life. I hope you enjoy the new look!

Day 24

Day 24 - A picture of something you wish you could change

I wish that all animals had a forever home. Cats and dogs and pocket pets were meant to be inside and loved on! I wish that there wasn't a need for the Humane Society or animal shelters. I wish that people would realize that when you buy/adopt a pet, it is a lifetime commitment. I don't understand when people move and leave behind a pet (which is where one of my kitties came from). I certainly don't understand people that physically harm animals but I won't even get into that.

All of my fur kids have come from the Capital Area Humane Society (and that is one of the charities that we are supporting in honor of our wedding guests!). I am glad that shelters exist and that there are amazing, selfless people in the world that are willing to help take care of these animals and help them to find their forever homes....I just wish there could be change in the world so that shelters weren't needed!

The Pilot and I took my niece and nephew to the Humane Society right before Christmas to make a donation in their parents' names instead of giving them a gift. We took some pictures and gave a little scrapbook to my brother and his wife.

Day 23

Day 23 - A picture of your favorite book



I first read Judy Blume's Summer Sisters back in 1999 when I was a freshman in college. One of the girls in my dorm let me borrow it and I fell in love with it. I have read the book every single summer since then and it never gets old. It is a coming of age story that is written so well that you feel like you personally know the characters. Or maybe its just that everyone can relate to at least one of the main characters. Even though I have now read the book 12 times, I will read it again this summer and probably the summer after that. Each time is like visiting with an old friend.

Day 22

Day 22 - A picture of something you wish you were better at

That's an easy one if I think about my training adventures. I wish I was a better swimmer! I can keep myself afloat. I could save my own life if I fell in. I can even make it quite a few laps. Heck, I know I can swim a mile without stopping. I wish I was FASTER. I swim just like I walk, run and cycle. Very slow!

Taking swim lessons in 2009 when I first decided a mini-sprint distance triathlon was a good idea (never mind the fact that I couldn't swim a length of the pool at the time, I didn't own a bike and I didn't run).


When I signed up for an Olympic-distance triathlon in 2010, The Pilot did this video mash-up of one of our TNT swim practices. You can see that I'm slow and can't swim in a straight line (I'm in the teal swim cap and navy swim suit).

Day 21

Day 21 - A picture of something you wish you could forget


Well maybe I don't wish that I could forget as much as I wish it just didn't happen at all. I also find myself more aware of that day now than I did a couple years ago. I was in college on September 11, 2001. And now in 2011, I am about to marry a commercial airline pilot. It's not a frequent worry but it's sure there.