Pushing Through...

Otherwise known as The Countdown to Thanksgiving...

This week has been a very, very busy week.  So busy, in fact, that I skipped salsa class last night.  Very little (these days) gets between me and salsa.  But this week, with two evening events at My Small Town High School, one Groupon obligation, and a two-hour professional development presentation (that I gave twice today!), something had to give.  I didn't have an opportunity to run until yesterday, so I ran my prescribed four miles in the afternoon, enjoyed a tremendously needed evening in last night, and ran another prescribed four miles this afternoon, sandwiched between my last presentation and going back to work a bit after six for my second evening event this week. 

Is it Friday yet?

At least we have the whole of Thanksgiving week off. 

Yesterday, the last thing I wanted to do was to hit the running path at My Small Town Lakefront.  At the same time, I knew that running would help me.  I was a little bit stressed (a gross understatement), and getting a good sweat on can often times help with stress relief.  Despite the fact that we are in the month of November, it is quite warm in Florida at the moment.  Eighty plus degrees warm.  I ran, and didn't push myself particularly hard because for me, it was an accomplishment just to be running.  I was exhausted.

I went.  I ran.  I sweated like no tomorrow.  (So much that my eyes burned from the sweat running down my forehead!)  We're talking buckets here.  I don't sweat buckets, I'm Jen Single!

I conquered. 

Today, even though I had two hours from the time I finished my last presentation to the time I needed to be back at school, I found a way to run.  I was running fast (for me) and it felt good.  Again, the temperature was pretty warm, and I looked pretty disgusting by the time the four miles was completed.  After the run I stretched and tried to cool down.  Upon arriving home, a frigid shower was the order of the afternoon.  I blew my hair out, made up my face, and drove to My Small Town High School.  The event was wonderful, and I took my leave a bit early.  I was tired, talked out (to be honest), and needed a bit of downtime.

I learned this week that despite the busy-ness of life I can still push through and find time to exercise.  Yes, I exercised because my half-marathon training schedule says that I have to, but I also exercised because I needed to.  I needed to channel my stress, to work my body, and to forget about everything else but the music playing into my ears and each quarter mile that passed beneath my feet.

It has been a busy week, but it has been good as well.  Tonight I saw a friend who had been a colleague at the school where I had been given my first school counseling position. 

Jen, you look good. 

Thanks!

Really, you've lost a lot of weight.  You really look good!

I had already offered thanks, what more was there left to say?  Thanks!

After all, Thanksgiving is just a week away.

Addendum:  The author feels simultaneously terribly vain and absurdly guilty for enjoying these compliments, and really,truly, wants to stop writing about them.  But for now, she can't.  Because she still can't quite believe that this is her life, and so must continue to relay compliments, because that makes the life she has feel that much more... real.