Best of 2009

I think many of us will agree that 2009 was a difficult year.  And it felt difficult while living it.  But looking back, I have so much to be grateful for and wanted to share some of the highlights with you.

FAMILY

• I got married!  On February 27, 2009, I married the love of my life, Tim Long.  Just a small, simple ceremony with my sister, brother-in-law and parents in attendance.  It was the perfect way to start our life together.  I couldn't ask for a better friend, partner, cheerleader and coach.

• My sister got married, too!  Her celebration was larger and more elaborate, but no less joyful.  So happy to welcome Brian to our family and see my sister so happy.

• My parents celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary!  So, so grateful for their love and support.  And their genes--don't they look amazing?

• My dad completed his first half marathon!  Our family trip to Kiawah Island was supposed to be my marathon debut.  Alas, it was not meant to be--a nasty case of swine flu knocked me out.  But it was a true joy to cheer on my father as he crossed the finish line--two days later, he was ready for more! 

FRIENDS

• My best friend Emily had another sweet baby boy, Samuel "Cutler," every bit as adorable as his big brother, Jonah.  Such a blessing to be able to spend time with the Hardings this year.
  

• While the Country Music Marathon was my least favorite event of the year, I got to spend the entire weekend with one of my best friends, Angela Hansberger.  It was our third season training together, and collectively, we've raised over $30,000 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.  Angela had never even run a mile until her dear friend Kate was diagnosed over two years ago--what a joy to run all of those miles with her, and better still, to celebrate Kate being cancer free this summer.

• The 4th of July!  It's my favorite holiday.  This year, I ran the Peachtree Road Race for the eight consecutive year with my TNT friends, my husband, my dad and honorary brother David Cordell, whose wife Sarah (my best friend from college) and son Nathan have started joining us for the holiday.  I love nothing more than a great run in the sweltering heat with 60,000 of my closet friends, followed by grilling out, fruity drinks and low-key times with family.

• The Stupid Chickens!  Most Wednesday nights, you can find me, Tim and our neighbors and close friends, Paul and Sarah McKibben, plus others who joined us along the way, at Bone Garden Cantina.  No matter how packed our training and work schedules are, Wednesday night has become sacred time reserved for fellowship over cheese dip and margaritas.  Better yet, we managed to win four straight quarterly tournaments--earning us bar cash for even more cheese dip and margaritas!

• My dear friends Jaclyn and Roger got married!  I met them through my very first Team in Training event, when their relationship was brand new, so it's been a joy to watch them fall deeper and deeper in love as the months and years have passed.  Mazel tov!

• Twitter!  I heart Twitter.  Yes, not all connections on Twitter turn into friendships (see this recent blog post for more), but many of them did, particularly with my long-lost twin Gini Dietrich (whom I got to meet in Chicago in October), and the fabulously witty and wonderful Marisa Sharpe.  So blessed to meet so many amazing new people.

 FOOD 

2009 was the year this formerly picky eater became a foodie.

Highlights?

• Meeting Jen and Ryan Hidinger of Staple House.  Fabulous people making fabulous food (and football fanatics).  You won't meet more real people in all of Atlanta, and Tim and I are happy to call them friends.  Can't wait for their restaurant to open!
  

• Woodfire Grill.  I had four outstanding meals at Woodfire this year: Tim's birthday, a girls' night out with Angela, my birthday dinner with family and a serendipitous meal with my friend Chris.  All very sweet memories, made even sweeter by the company as well as the outstanding food and service.
  

• Antico pizza.  I need a 12 step program for this pizza.  My best experience there was a private tasting in the kitchen, where we ate slice after slice of cheesy goodness.  While the place has lost some of its initial charm, the pizza is still heavenly enough to merit a weekly visit.

• The Holeman and Finch burger.  It's legendary.  For those who don't know, they only make 24 burgers a day and only serve them at 10pm.  And on Christmas Eve, Tim and I FINALLY got to taste Atlanta's juiciest novelty.  We've decided to make it an annual tradition. 
  

• Julie and Julia.  The ultimate foodie movie.  Several of us (including Patti and Kathianne, pictured below), got together to celebrate a friend's birthday, then went to see the movie that had all donning aprons and craving beef bourguignon. 

FORTUNE

While 2009 seemed challenging in the moment, as I look back, it was a year of huge growth.  For me as a person, as a runner and as an entrepreneur.  I can't say thank you enough to all of the people who made that possible and look forward to more amazing experiences, relationships and connections in 2010.

Pass the champagne!

Tradition

I hate Thanksgiving.  I have nothing against thankfulness (something I try to practice daily), but as someone who has always struggled with food and body image, an entire day devoted to gluttony is definitely not on my list of favorite holidays.

For 32 years, I conformed.  I suffered the turkey, the congealed salads, the endless hours of preparation and cleanup, the excess, the obligations.

But not this year.  I threw out all the traditions and did Thanksgiving MY way.

Half marathon and pizza.  And I was happy.  And oh so grateful.

Gratitude

I joke a lot on this blog that my life isn't glamorous.  And yes, some days, when I'm still unshowered in my PJs at 8pm, noshing on cold pizza and having pitched the same story for so many hours I feel like a used car salesman, it can seem very mundane.

But in reality, I live a charmed life.  At a time when so many of my friends are struggling, I'm even more keenly aware of my blessings: a loving, supportive husband; a great network of friends and fellow dreamers; clients who believe in me and have amazing gifts to share;  as well as health, happiness and a home.

It's far too easy to become complacent, to envy the paths of others.  Today, I'm going to try and be grateful and positive in the present.

Eating Frogs

Every morning, I try to eat a frog.  The earlier, the better.

I'm a procrastinator by nature.  I will do anything to avoid a task I find less than stimulating, whether it's crafting a difficult email, taking the car to get the oil changed or putting away my laundry.

I'm the same way with running.  I'm usually good about getting my runs in, but I purposely avoid certain routes that I know are challenging.  Namely, Bohler Road.

In the past two years, I've come a long way with my running and have learned to tackle some pretty substantial hills.  Cardiac Hill?  Easy.  Johnson Ferry Road?  A breeze.

But Bohler Road has been my nemesis.  A half mile of pure, inclined hell.  The last time I ran that route was back in June, and I bonked so hard I walked the two miles home and seriously contemplated calling a friend to pick me up.  Granted, I was hungover and it was 88 degrees outside, which probably contributed to my struggle.  But mentally, I couldn't bring myself to conquer it again, for fear of failure.  Until today.

You see, three weeks ago, a friend of mine was hit by a car while out for her morning run.  The same breezy routine repeated by thousands of runners across the country, but with a nightmarish ending.  Two weeks in a coma.  Still unable to speak or eat or walk. Months, possibly years of rehabilitation ahead of her.

It makes me scared, sad and hopeless.  What can you say or do to possibly heal that type of wound?  To try to make sense of such a random, senseless occurence?

For me, the only thing I know how to do, the only thing I can do, is run.  And run with a vengeance.  Safely and alertly, but with strength and purpose.  

And run I did.  Up that damn hill.  It wasn't fast, and it wasn't pretty, but I did it.  And was grateful for the opportunity to do so.

Summer Lovin'

It's the first day of September, and this little cold front we're having here in Atlanta is sending people into a fall frenzy. Everyone has football, sweaters and soup on the brain. And while I'll admit that running in 70 degree temps is a nice change of pace, can we just pause for a minute and celebrate all things summer?

Beaches, swimming pools, sundresses, cookouts, dining al fresco, corn on the cob, berries from the vine, flip flops, pedicures, longer days, sunshine, sand in your toes, fireflies, summer storms, rainbows, lemonade, ice cream, convertibles, fireworks, outdoor concerts, baseball, white pants---see, don't you want it to last just a little bit longer?

Morning Grace

I HATE mornings. Even as a baby, I slept until 9 a.m. Throughout my school years (and this includes high school), my mom literally rolled me out of bed onto the floor to get me moving. In college, I rarely took a class before 10 a.m. Even now, getting out of bed by 9 a.m. is a challenge.

So, of course, I had to pick a hobby (running) that requires me to get up at an ungodly hour every Saturday morning. I usually set my alarm to go off about an hour and half before I need to leave, in the hopes that I may actually wake up and get out of bed on time.

Yesterday morning, the alarm was set for 6:30 a.m. I was meeting my friends at 7:45 a.m. The alarm went off as scheduled--and I promptly turned it off, pulled the covers over my eyes and went back to sleep. Until 8:05 a.m.

Like most mornings, it was tempting to sleep in. To shade my weary eyes from the sun, to leave my tired limbs--already aching from 12 miles run in the previous four days--where they were. I really, really didn't want to get out of bed, let alone run 12 miles. And then I looked down at the pink bracelet on my wrist, and I bounded out of bed, threw on my running clothes and was out of the house in under ten minutes.

I'd worn this bracelet for two years and one day--starting the day of the Team in Training kickoff meeting for the Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon, and the day I met Kate. This bracelet--worn by not just by me, but my my teammates and dozens of Kate's family and friends--is inscribed with the words "Kisses for Kate," and is our way of showing solidarity and support for Kate and her family.

And yesterday was the day we were celebrating the fact that Kate--at the tender age of seven--had survived two years, two months and three days worth of chemotherapy to kill the leukemia that ravaged her little body. And survive, she did. With grace and strength and charm beyond her years.

It was not a day to sleep in, but to celebrate Kate, her journey and her triumph. And for me, that meant running 12 miles--gratefully, joyfully, humbly--in her honor.