Oh, Resolutions

 I realize that it is January 25th, but I promise I set my New Year's Resolutions before the new year.  And here they are:
1.  Be more patient (especially with people I am routinely a cranky-pants to)
2.  Be more a more consistent vegetarian and practice yoga more routinely
3.  Run two marathons
4.  Lead a 5.12 rated climb outside

I was pretty psyched about these resolutions, in part because I was so successful with my resolutions last year and thought that would continue this year.  Alas, this almost all unraveled in the first two weeks of 2012.  It went down like this:

Showing Phyllis the Forester some love.  We are parked, and not lost.  

1.  The combination of southern California traffic, my poor sense of direction (and my entire family's sense of direction, really, we're like wounded bumble bees), a lot of time in the car, Las Vegas, and a serious sugar crash lead to:

 a.  my getting unbelievably lost and cranky in San Diego, repeatedly, despite having saintly navigators (really, electronic navigators is what we needed)
b. a very tired bottom and depleted tear ducts
c. frightening a very sweet, new acquaintance who followed her heart to Sweet Tomatoes
d.  openly weeping in the salad bar line at Sweet Tomatoes  

While this was very discouraging, I am trying to patiently make the most of it.  It's clear to me that I can work on being more patient.  I think there may be a number of steps in this process: (1) print directions to everywhere, possibly invest in a talky GPS; (2) maintain perspective, 60 miles is not infinite, it's just 60 miles; (3) making sure I eat good foods (Read: more sustaining than chocolate chip cookies) all day long, even long stressful days.  And to those I scared with my tears, I am very sorry.  If you give me another chance I will make sure to leave my cranky pants at home.  

I love baking cookies.  But they are only nutritious for the soul .  The body need more veggies.  

2.  I have been a vegetarian more most of the last four years.  I say most because I have been a terrible vegetarian since about August, when I started training for a marathon and realized I was becoming iron deficient.  Really I was so tired I would lean in to look at a soil pit and end up resting my head on the edge, just for a little rest.  After the marathon I never really got back on track, but I was going to for 2012, then I found myself ridiculously tired again.  This is distressing in part because it is no longer acceptable for people my age to need an afternoon nap everyday (I hope one day this stigma lifts), but also because it makes me  boring, and one of my few life goals is to be an interesting person.  Anyways, after having to turn down climbing because I was too tired (and realizing that Brent was expecting that), I decided I can't be busy and maintain the type of vegetarian diet I need to remain healthy.  So I cook a meaty meal about once a week.  That combined with my vitamin supplement seem to be doing the trick.  I've died a little inside, because I very much loved being a vegetarian and dislike taking my vitamins, but I've also been able to go to the butcher around here, so I feel like I'm still maintaining my environmental principles.  And I think this year I'm really going to start fishing!

I finished a marathon once.  

3.  Running two marathons is still within reach, but a week ago that didn't seem to be the case.  During the TOU marathon I began having IT band issues, and the fix for that is to rest, so I did, for 2 months.  I ran a Thanksgiving Day race that brought the same old pain back, but much faster.  This was distressing so I decided to modify my run, which is much easier to do on a treadmill.  I went for a brief outside run during the first week of the semester and found the same pain again, as well as some chest pains.  It was crushing.  But I read more about ITB pain and found some more ways I can run better and can proudly say I ran three miles yesterday without ITB pain (however, they were three treadmill miles, and I can barely walk now due to my sore calves).  My running future is bright.  Plus I have sweet tights that make me fill spiffy.

This is how I climb on top rope.  It's awkward.  I suppose it's also awkward on lead, but it looks cooler without the rope in the picture.  

4.  I feel like I'm finally back into a climbing groove.  I've spent the last few months behaving pretty belligerently about lead climbing.  I just haven't wanted to do it, especially when my friends could do it for me.  I think I may have developed more than a mental block when it comes to climbing on lead, it was a straight up attitude problem that I had no intention to fix.  The only desire to go back to being a good climber was a nagging guilt that I was being boring, my friends are all challenging themselves to be better and I'm moving backwards and whining the whole time.  Then yesterday I had a break through with a climb I'd been working on in the gym: I discovered I was mostly board with the top rope wall.  It's time to move on.  Of course my resolve my dissolve once I rope up, but I'm going to keep trying to make myself believe it will happen.

So that's essentially the month of January.  I've had a lot of moments where all I could think is "Running/climbing/grad school is hard."  But I've also had a few moments of appropriate perspective: my trouble are few, my life is awesome.  So here's to 2012, I will become a better person.

The future is bright, and it was sunny at Red Rocks.  Mmm.  Sun.