I think I just landed a snot rocket on your car...HA!

Running in a small town…

Following are a list of my rants, compliments and experiences of running in a small town.

Most of the roads in my area to run on do not have sidewalks or shoulders, it is one lane each way and usually edged by fairly tall grass (littered with empty liquor bottles) on the side of the road. 

Typically I run with headphones but they are on so low that I can hear everything going on around me including snide comments from pedestrians on the road.  I always run facing traffic and get as far to the edge of the road as humanly possible, I have even had to jump into the woods on several occasions when the idiots are out…which is essentially everyday.

My observations in no particular order:

1.       Older women drivers WILL NOT veer out of their lane to give me an extra inch of running space for any reason.  Apparently their driving instructors told them to stay in their lane no matter what, even if it means killing the mother of small children. 

Guess what lady????  I probably just spit or landed a massive snot rocket on your car. If your car is within spit range…I land it EVERYTIME!  Classy =)

That's right old lady...come a little closer!

2.      My friends like to honk at me…STOP!  I am in my quiet happy place.  When you honk I practically jump into oncoming traffic, I do not like it.  Wave or text me later.  I LOVE YOU ALL!



Me leaping when you beep your horn....
but with cars to run me over.

3.       Apparently I run with my fingers in the “I love you” sign for sign language.  This has been pointed out to me several times, I kind of like it.  Take is as a compliment my love.  I ran near a woman for about 8 miles of a race who I will swear was extending her middle finger the entire time, be happy I love you!

4.      People tend to notice you out running.  I often get called out on sightings….heard were you running at ________.  Word has it that you were cranking out miles yesterday with _____.  Keep the sightings up, it makes me feel like I am the mysterious running chick,sort of the female version of Caballo Blanco or Micah True for those of you familiar.

A rare sighting of the Mysterious Trail Runner

5.      Old men in pick-up trucks like to talk to the funny running lady.  Most of them are lacking teeth but are super nice and always tell me how pretty I am…it's one of my favorite parts of living in a small town.

6.      Texting and talking on the phone while driving are NOT dead regardless of the law and are NOT safe.  Eyes on the road people…I think I am about out of extra lives.



Keep texting and driving; go ahead, run me down I will keep trying
to catch up and land my snot rocket.

7.       I live in a nice quiet neighborhood with homes on 3 acre lots, we have a nice and easy 10 mile run built right in along with the pool and tot lot.  The problem is, everyone is finishing up their breakfast, checking their purse, and sending out last minute texts as they drive WAY TOO FAST through our quiet little streets.  Your drive begins when you pull out of the driveway my friends.

I am sure I will come up with some more of my love/hate relationship with running in a small town and will be sure to keep you posted.  So keep your eyes on the road and your hands off your phone and your horn.

Always finish happy =)

 

Thanks!

What have you noticed while running?
Are you a honker?
Is spitting on someone's car rude when they are about to rudely mow you down?

Take Thanksgiving Back!

Thanksgiving….

Lately I have really been feeling sorry for poor old decrepit Thanksgiving. 

It’s not really a spend LOADS of money holiday except for the whole Black Friday extravaganza it’s more of an eat LOADS of food kind of holiday and as a nation we are supposed to be frowning on that behavior…so what should we do with Thanksgiving?

I have an amazing idea (of course I will probably be the only to think so):

Why don’t we put all of the sales circulars down, close all of the stores, and spend time with our family to give thanks for all that we have rather than buying a bunch of junk that we don’t even need.

Oh, yeah…that is what the holiday IS about.

I am Thankful for Cartwheels at mile 26 :-)

This year on Thanksgiving morning I went for a 15.5 mile run and listened to Avalon, Andy Griffith (uh huh….hymns baby), and even to Wee Sing Bible Songs.  Do you know what????  I have a lot to be thankful for.  1 Thessalonians 5:18 reminds us “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  By the way, this is so NOT going to be a sermon, just a little reminder.

People say to me all the time that they have no idea how I do it, how I keep on keeping on after everything.  Comments are made about how they would have lost faith and jumped off of a bridge eons ago, so why is it that I am the one talking continuously about counting my blessings?  It’s because no matter how you look at my life or my circumstances, it’s true, I am blessed and reminded of those blessings…in big ways and small, sometimes through sheer agony and others through sheer joy.

If Grace had been born with the ability to see, to me she would always be Amazing Grace…but to everyone else she would be that sweet little Gracie Hammett.  Through God’s Grace I got to travel a journey with my child that few mothers will ever experience, I was able to watch my blind child learn to see.   I was there for her when she could not see and I was there the exact moment she was touched, that God put the gift of vision into her and enabled her to see.  Are you counting yet?

How it feels to count your blessings!

 

OH YES!

When baby Sarah was born asleep I honestly thought I would never recover.  After 50 hours of labor with every conceivable complication known to mankind I thought I had seen the worst, but less than 7 weeks later I very accidentally (and excitedly) found myself pregnant with one of the most amazing gifts I will ever know, my sweet and perfect Ella Jordan.  With Grace being blind, my pregnancy with Sarah was an experience in hope…I hoped and prayed for a child with sight, God chose to give Grace the ability to see and helped me to learn that all children are a blessing born or unborn.  Sarah helped me to learn that life is precious; sight, sound, touch and smell are just added bonuses.

After an 18 week miscarriage, postpartum hemorrhage/hysterectomy and breast cancer am I am still counting my blessings…heck yes!

I will pick these guys over a TV everytime!

 

They probably want the TV though.

Cancer gave me running and without Clara there would have been no Postpartum Hemorrhage or TRUE appreciation for blood donors.  On some base level I would have known donors were awesome…but now I now know exactly why.  They take an hour out of their day doing what they think is right not knowing who they are going to help.  In my case they helped a woman who had just delivered her fifth child, her third living child and who REALLY needed to stay alive to enjoy the fruits of her labor.  Now I am even blessed by strangers. 

As I look around on a daily basis life has really turned out OK.  It’s an entirely a different life than I had ever planned on living.  I never thought that I would live in an area that I do not like for so long but my husband is happy at his job and there are a lot of nice places to run.  So I have to look at living here, far from my family in that light, there is always a positive spin if we choose to find it. 

Black Friday Shopping is FUN!!!!!!!

So, let’s take Thanksgiving back.  Let’s not even start shopping until the Monday after (yeah, Scrooge I hear you)!  Is just amazes me that everyone yaks around the Thanksgiving table expounding upon their blessings, hops up from the table while scraping the last of the dessert off their plate, to wait in line to save $200 on a 60 inch television that they do not need (sorry folks, no one needs one). 

Seriously, take a few days and think about it.  Maybe even make a list.

Do you know that I ran A LOT (and for me to say a lot, be very scared of what my Garmin mileage reads) over this break and even with all of my running I did not have enough time to truly realize all of the gifts I already have?  That’s correct; lying in bed last night I was still rolling them out…

Thanks.

 
What are you thankful for?

Did you brave the crowds and save loads of money?

What is your favorite Thanksgiving memory?