Hi all,
If you have arrived at this site, please know that I am now writing at a new address.
Please feel free to peruse the archives of my thoughts on writing and life here @ Ironmatron.
My new blog is @
jojogetback.blogspot.com
It's been nearly a year since I've written. There are reasons.
First, I became sick of writing about training and racing. I could not
think of a new thing to say about it. I became boring--even to myself.
Part of this is because I was quite burned out of training and racing.
So, I stopped training, and subsequently stopped writing about training.
I did race a bit anyway. My conclusion is that racing isn't fun if you
are not in shape to race. Racing without having trained is just very,
very painful. There's little reward.
Second, I stopped blogging because I decided to teach again. I took four
and a half years off from teaching. I didn't miss it at first. I didn't
miss it, actually, for several years. But then… I did miss it. I missed
the act of teaching, but it was more than that. I also missed having a
profession and being a professional. I missed immersing myself in a
craft. I missed having a reason to read the cheesy YA books I love. I
missed the rhythm of the work week. I missed drinking coffee as I drove
to work. I missed saying, "I'm a teacher."
Because that is what I am.
I also love to run and read and do triathlon and train and garden and
write and take care of dogs and my kids. But I think I was *meant* to
teach. I'm good at it in a way I will never be "good" at those other
things. I missed being very good at something and I missed being
respected for being good at something. I missed that a lot.
So I went back to teaching.
And when teaching you don't want a blog out there that reveals you--a
blog in which you have used foul language and admitted to resorting to
unsavory urinary practices while racing and in which you indulgently and
obsessively self-analyze.
You can still access that blog if you have permission from me. If you
want permission just leave me a comment asking for it. But that blog is
just archived writing now. The IronMatron has retired.
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This blog will not just address my adventures in training and
triathlon-ing--but that's basically what it will be about. I'm sure it
will be self-indulgent and overly self-revealing in some ways--just as
the IronMatron's blog was, but I'm hoping it will not be quite so raw
and…exposed. I suppose if I don't want to be raw and exposed I simply
shouldn't have a blog. But I miss the tri-blogging community. I miss
getting and giving support from people who love to do this crazy
endurance stuff like I do. Most of all, I miss thinking and writing
about ME. I love writing and thinking about me. You know? I'm 44. One of
the gifts of being middle-aged is that I'm so over pretending I'm not
completely self-absorbed. It's a waste of energy trying to deny it, so
I'm choosing to embrace it instead.
Plus, now that I'm teaching again I need a way to procrastinate grading
papers. I love teaching, but MAN do I dislike grading papers.
So.
I'm thinking about all the awesome racing I'm going to do this summer!
I'm really, really excited to do some racing, and to do it when I'm IN
SHAPE. I am extremely sick of being out-of-shape. It's hard to feel
superior in any way when you are as slovenly and lazy as I have been
over the last year or so. See, I'm self-absorbed AND I enjoy feeling
superior. It's a winning combo.
Right now I'm in that awesome planning stage. Everything is possible!
I'm not tired or sick, and the calendar months stretch out before me, so
innocent and naked, just waiting to be filled up with hours and hours
of training.
Of course, the job part does make filling that calendar up with training
a bit challenging. I simply don't have the hours to train that I used
to have. Also, working makes me tired. Also, I have a long commute.
Also, I still have those three awesome kids and four awesome dogs and
that one awesome husband. Also, we are moving from one town to another
over the next few months.
But in those very few hours that I have left, I plan to TRAIN!
Actually, I've already started training. But my efforts are a bit on
the pathetic side. Apparently when you take two years off from serious
training it is not easy to just--you know--get right back at it. I
remember in the days of yore completing 8 hours in a week of training
was very light--a recovery week even. Now eight hours kills me. KILLS
ME. I need hours more sleep and I start weaving, by Sunday, with
fatigue. I'm hoping this gets better soon.
The two races I am most excited about are:
Doesn't that sound fantastic?!
I can't wait.
