Archive for the ‘Gettin' My Swole On’ Category

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Time

Saturday, July 24th, 2010

Man, the clock is ticking far too slowly this morning. Sure, hold onto the weekend and all but I woke up at 6:30 this morning because it was so bright, and have been hating the clock ever since.

The cats drove me NUTS with their meowing for breakfast, then straight up disappeared after they have their fill. I live to serve them. Brats.

I sincerely hope I packed everything I need because I have a very busy day today. I’m teaching a Spin class in 45 minutes, and am then heading off to help a friend cater her annual summer pool party. The heat index is supposed to get up to 110 today, thank goodness she has a pool!

I’ve been helping my friend with this party every year for the past six years, and we’ve finally got it down to a science. A good bit of planning and conversation goes into it the week before hand to reduce the amount of work we both have to do. Last year was pretty smooth, this year should be flawless. My recommendation this year was, “No mixed drinks, and keep people out of the damn kitchen. They just get in my way.”

The party used to be for her husband’s work partners and associates. Now it’s for her son’s friends and their families. We estimate about 30 children will attend today and my cannonball has already been requested. Ka-BOOM I might be small but I pull off a wicked cannonball. I actually really like playing with kids in the pool, and kids LOVE when there’s an adult in the pool. It’s good times all around.

In other news, tomorrow is my birthday. 33! Matt is treating me to a mini-spa day and then taking me out to a French country restaurant I’ve been begging to go to all year. Oh my god, YUM. Talk all you will about Asian fusion and exotic cooking, French cuisine owns my soul. Matt says, “It’s just butter and salt and wine, no wonder you like it so much.”

And cheese and meat and bread and simplicity …

Okay, I got run. I have a class to teach!

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Oops

Thursday, July 22nd, 2010

5:47 this morning, halfway to Spin class, I realized I didn’t have my iPod. That’s okay, I’ll just reach down between the seat and console and pull out my trusty mix-CD sleev… oops. I don’t have that either. Well, shit. Then I remembered that they have CDs at the gym so that would just have to do.

I arrived at the gym grumpy, bloated, not caffeinated/half asleep, and told the class, “This morning’s ride is going to be a surprise for everyone, including me. I forgot my iPod so I’m going to use a CD from the shelf over here. I have no idea what’s on any of them so I’ll see what I can come up with based on the first track.”

I grabbed a CD that had “Spinning” scribbled on it with a Sharpie, popped it in the CD player, and immediately found myself mellowing into a wonderful French pop song so I set my mind to work designing a nice, aerobic workout on the fly. And, you know what? We lit it up and it was the best ride I’ve led in the eight months I’ve been teaching Spin.

Can you say awesome? Because I can. I met a challenge, head on, no fear, in a room full of people who were relying on me to give them a good workout first thing in the morning. I rose to the challenge and kicked its ass.

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Conversation in the locker room

Tuesday, July 13th, 2010

Rider: Did you see that Ellicott City was ranked number 2 by CNN Money in the “Best places to live” list?

Me: I did, and I take it they don’t know anyone who lives here, or at least has to drive here.

Rider: Tell me about it. I live off Route 99 and it’s awful making a left turn out of my neighborhood.

Me: Yeah, I grew up in *** off *** Drive and it was always rough making a left turn, it’s only gotten worse.

Rider: Oh, really? What street because I live on *** Drive.

Me: ******* Drive.

VERY PREGNANT PAUSE

Rider: Joe and Judy’s daughter? Your brother ran over my tree!

EXTREMELY PREGNANT PAUSE. At this point, I didn’t know what to think. I wanted to feel elated but instead I felt trapped so I feigned excitement.

Me: He totally did. He was just learning how to drive and didn’t pull up the e-brake and the car slipped out of gear and rolled down the street and right into your front yard! Thank God it was a tree. It could have been much worse. I totally forgot about that!

Then, I got very quiet and felt really awkward. I’ve never felt so revealed, nor so embarrassed. Here I am, a model for good, healthy living, and this woman has seen me, or heard rumored about me, at my absolute worst. Then, I thought about how awful it must have been for my mother to continue living in that neighborhood after we had gone and I felt ashamed. I’ve never in my life felt ashamed.

Cathy: I can’t believe it. Cindy! You were one seriously wild child from what I remember. Do you remember my son, Joe?

Me: Vaguely. We had a couple of years between us and I didn’t play much with boys at that age. I remember he was really into baseball and always playing catch with his dad. And wild, yeah, that doesn’t describe it. I wasn’t a very good kid. That kid you warned your kids against? That was me.

Cathy: Yeah, I heard things but I didn’t know you guys that well. I tried not to pass judgement.

Me: I am totally floored right now! Then again, you grow up somewhere, you stay in that place, you are going to know people. That’s why they call it Smalltimore. Matt and I can’t go into a single pub in Ellicott City without me running into ten people I know.

Cathy: Smalltimore, I like that. Well, you are the example of how people can turn their lives around. How about that? I still can’t believe it.

Then I smiled and felt okay about it. Then I hoped she would keep coming to my classes. Then I hoped I’d never done anything horrible to her kids. Then I worried word would get out around the gym about what a total waster and delinquent I used to be and I would lose my instructor position. Then I got over it.

Speaking of instructor positions, I purchased the ACE group ex certification study guide and exam package today. I suppose it’s time to get rolling on this. Lord knows I’ve talked about it long enough.

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Tomorrow, It’s All About Inspiration

Monday, June 28th, 2010

It’s been six weeks since I’ve created a new Spin playlist, which isn’t as big a deal for my riders as it is for me because I taught 16 classes last month with 10 playlists I like. LAME! Although I’m grateful to those Spin classes because they kept me focused on fitness during all the madness of getting our house ready for the market.

Over the weekend, I started working on a new playlist–a big climbing playlist that gets riders out of the saddle 30 seconds into the ride and uses inspiring, motivational cues from me to keep the motivation and energy in the room strong! I’m still working on the order of these but am definitely ending with the Eminem song. My friend E jokes that it’s going to be 30 seconds long since it’s a clean edit:

  • White Liar – Miranda Lambert
  • You’re So Damn Hot – Ok Go
  • Ain’t No Easy Way – Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
  • She’s a Rebel – Green Day
  • Radio Nowhere – Bruce Springsteen
  • Ride to California – Paper Tongues
  • The Great Ceildh Swindle – Peatbog Faries
  • Viva La Vida (Live) – Coldplay
  • Anthem – Moby
  • Pills – Run Lola Run
  • Lose Yourself – Eminem (clean edit)
  • Change – Blind Melon, for the strecth

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A Really Long Post About A Lot of Things

Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010

Well, I’ve come full circle now, haven’t I?

Matt and I went to our favorite spot last night after I got back from teaching Spin and said, “I need a motherfucking drink. Let’s go.” The bar was quiet and somewhat empty so we took seats by the taps, ordered some beers and some dinner, and chilled.

Then, around 9:00, it got busy but the vibe was still good. We talked to the locals. I ran into some folks from high school. We listened to some awesome live music. We might have gotten a teensy bit drunk. We might have talked to a guy who liked the Vince Neil performance and shouted at him, “You were drunk!”

“Yes! I was!”

We might have had the time of our lives. Matt might have told a guy eating a huge hot dog, “You have to cup the bun.” Said guy might have nearly choked on said huge hote dog. Matt might have also said, “I think I want to live in this area.”

I blinked, and might have said, “Yeah. Me too.”

Was it the booze talking? Imagine that! Me! Back in Ellicott City? I’ve lived in so many places only to return to the town I grew up in? It seems so, so, so, someone help me here because I can’t find the word(s).

Poetic? Twisted? Perfectly normal?

My dad will have a field day with this one …

Then, this morning, I got up at 5:00 a.m. to meet Matt’s cousin at the MAC downtown for a 6:00 a.m. Spin class. I got there at 5:45 and there was a line 20 deep. I managed to snag the last two together bikes and waited for him to arrive. We chatted lightly, preparing ourselves for an early morning ride. I figured, “I’m an instructor, this will be a piece of cake.”

Then the instructor came in all like 2% body fat and chipper wearing the shortest shorts I have ever seen and had the most amazing ass EVER, calling out, “Good morning” and WORKED US LIKE RIBS often telling us, “It’s just a feeling. Ride through it.” My thoughts ran in this order:

  • Oh, so this is a warm up? Really?
  • Am I this cruel to my students?
  • I want to die.
  • Maybe I should be crueler to my students?
  • This can’t be safe.
  • Wheeeeee!
  • Holy shit, I want to die.
  • Should we really be pedaling this fast in this position?
  • I want to die.
  • I love this song! Hell yeah!
  • Holy fuck. Have I mentioned I want to die?
  • Thank god it’s over.

At one point, Matt’s cousin leaned over and said, “It’s just a feeling,” and I replied by panting and grimacing and saying, “Feel this.”

I had a good time though. It’s nice to take classes with other instructors. Pick out strengths and weaknesses, learn new techniques, remember what it is like to be a student.

Hmmm, what else …

Our house is staged and it looks so freakin’ awesome. Our realtor said, “You’re not going to stay, are you?”

“I don’t know, Megan. That camouflage fishing boat out front really makes the neighborhood.”

She said, “You didn’t tell me that detail. I laughed so hard when I drove in here and saw that!” So we are working on getting that nightmare that leaked gasoline, oil, and muck all over the street in front of my house OUT OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD. I powerwashed today. It helped, a little.

My life’s about to get flipped turned upside down but that’s alright. It’s summer, and I need more excuses to hit the gym. Or look at houses. Or cup the bun …

Posted in Family & Friends, Gettin' My Swole On, real estate | 1 Comment »

New Ritual?

Thursday, April 29th, 2010

So, I get up at 5:20 on Thursday morning to teach Spin, and have for quite some time now. When I get home, I feed and water the cats, pack lunches, scoop the liter boxes, collect the trash, and set our five-million recycle bins and one trash bag out on the curb. Okay, so it’s more like five recycle bins but it’s the joke of the neighborhood that we have one medium-sized bag of trash and a mountain of recycling. I probably need to take a picture of this.

Then, I head upstairs, wake up Matt, take a shower, get all gussied up and we go out for breakfast. This started because I came home from class one morning screaming about pancakes and Matt’s favorite thing in the world is going out for breakfast so he was all about it and decided we needed to keep being all about it.

I like this routine, and we get there so stinkin’ early we can sit in that booth for nearly an hour just talking and drinking coffee. Our waitress doesn’t mind and she keeps the coffee coming. She’s our regular waitress and she’s friendly, straight Baltimore, and never makes a mistake. We adore her and always leave her a massive tip. Best part? Our bill still comes out under $20.

So, this is kind of our routine, and I really like it. It makes me feel like I’ve been married for years and Matt and I are retired and have all the time in the world to do whatever the hell we want. It’s much more liberating than slamming the snooze button twenty times …

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Rainy Monday

Monday, April 26th, 2010

I work on the third floor of a three-story building. This floor has a 15-foot ceiling and the ceiling is made of tin, or whatever construction material is used to make roofs. When I look up I can see nails coming through the supports. This is a hostile work environment for three reasons:

  1. I can’t begin to imagine the amount of energy we waste heating this space.
  2. Noise travels. So that means the girl with the annoying laugh on the other side of the building or the guy who likes to trim his nails in his cube? Yeah, I can hear them loud and clear. Noise-canceling headphones help some with this, but god damn.
  3. When it rains, it’s so damn loud I have to shout when someone comes to my cube to talk to me. It sounds like television static and drills into my head all day long. It really sucks.

Okay, now that I’ve got that out of my system … it’s Monday, which means it’s Muscle Sculpt night. I haven’t talked to the manager since last Monday because I was god awful sick with allergies all week and he wasn’t around this weekend, but I put in a call to him today asking, “Am I teaching tonight? Are we moving forward with this?” Most likely I won’t know until I arrive tonight but I put together a play list and a routine just in case. I like to be prepared. Lots of abs work because I hate lunges.

In an unrelated, and exciting, news, my favorite restaurant is having a Heavy Seas event tonight with a CASK of Loose Cannon. If you know me, you know how much I looooooove cask beer. I will most likely arrive too late for this and I AM SAD, but, God bless them, with ten other beers on tap, I’m sure I’ll find something to drink:

  1. Red Sky at Night -Belgian-style saison. Bliss!
  2. Pale Ale – A long time favorite of mine.
  3. Gold – Runner up to the pale ale
  4. Big Dipa – This is what I drank the night I finished my garden. My goodness.
  5. Letter of Marque – Rye Porter, have yet to try this … swoon!
  6. Peg Leg – Matt’s favorite, always a good staple to have in the house.
  7. Below Decks – Barleywine, no thanks
  8. Siren Noire – Imperial Chocolate! I imagine they will be out of this as well. * fingers crossed *
  9. BaltoMarzHon – A classic!
  10. Small Craft Warning – I haven’t had one of these in a long time …

I made a reservation so I can ensure I have a table and will spend my post-workout quaffing pints of beer. Shhh, don’t tell my students.

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Lawn and Garden and Fitness

Tuesday, April 20th, 2010

I dug up and replanted our gardens this weekend. I’m paying for it in a big way right now with allergies … ooooooooog. But the allergies are fleeting, the transformation isn’t. My house is so stinkin’ pretty; it feels good to come home! I literally stand outside for a few minutes taking it all in before I walk into the house. It’s the prefect little patch of land. Bonus? We spent only $863 on the project. Most of that was on the lawn service, and that’s been worth every damn penny. The lawn looks amazing. Hell, the whole thing looks amazing.

I feel good about the labor and sweat I put into digging up and replanting the gardens. I’m thankful that my fitness allowed me to do this over the weekend without complaint. I’m not going to lie, it was hard work but satisfying. I’m going to admit that uprooting the azalea was just about the best 90 minutes of my life. I really hated it in that application.

Matt was on a camping trip with some of his boys over the weekend and when he got home on Sunday, he said, “Holy crap, this looks really nice. Even the hose pot, that I thought was stupid, looks nice. Wait a minute, do I have to water any of this?”

I laughed and said, “Yes, but the guy at the garden center told me I just have to crack open a beer for you and say, ‘This is how long it takes.’”

“Well, shit, that garden center guy knows what’s up. Does it need watering right now?”

I’m thrilled that I get to enjoy my pretty gardens this summer, but I’m not so attached to them that I won’t be able to put the house up for sale next spring. In fact, I feel good turning over something pretty and low maintenance to a new owner; and I can’t wait to do it all over again, with bigger gardens, in a new house, but I think I’ll take Zytec before I start the job next time. Oooooog.

In other news, I went to Muscle Sculpt last night and the instructor didn’t show up. This was the second week in a row and the manager literally begged me to lead the class. Did I? You’re damn right I did. I had no plan, I was using someone else’s music, and I was straight winging it. Somehow, it all worked out amazingly well. People were exhausting their muscles and we had a lot of fun in the process. I kept them guessing, I worked them out. I felt sky high about it as Matt as I were driving home last night.

It was quite the opportunity and the response I got from the girls in class was positive. I’m hoping this will lead to something more because I’d love to dip my hands into more than just Spin.

So, things are rolling along this spring. The winter blues have kissed me goodbye and I’m looking forward to an active and energetic six months. Now, if only I can get these allergies in check.

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Work in Progress

Sunday, April 11th, 2010

When Matt first struck out on his own, for real, he asked for five years in his business before we moved. Next spring will mark five years so I’m holding him to it because I really REALLY want a house that is OURs, you know? He’s agreed to it saying, “Yes, it’s time,” and I’ve agreed not to whine or complain or hate (too much) during the holding pattern.

We’ll make slow progress and continue to enjoy our lifestyle: travel, dining out, vacations, motorcycles, etc. Sure, I don’t like it here but knowing that we have an official date to get up and go makes it easier to stomach staying here another year. We’ve been looking for a long time but I really want to take another year to look and be absolutely positive about where we buy our next house.

Our front-of-house it looking good these days. The sod is greening up and we ripped out the shrubs in the front garden yesterday. Working on plans for what’s going in there but it’s so nice not to see those hideous bushes anymore!

In other news, we installed a top case on the BMW yesterday. What a pain in the ass that was but we got through two hours of install without fighting. Miracle! Matt was hesitant to spend the money but I said, “Matt, we need luggage on the bike. It’s a BMW. It’s expensive. Just do it. God dammit.”

Yes, it was expensive. Yes, I felt a little squeamish when Matt went to pay but it’s nice to have something to rest my back against and BMW luggage is the shit. The case expands to fit a helmet, is keyed to the bike so it can be locked and secured to the rack, and can be easily taken off and handled like a suitcase while traveling.

We have a few trips planned this summer, that’s for sure!

Oh, look at the time! I have to run off to teach a pick-up Spin class. Then it’s off to hike at Triadelphia reservoir, followed by grilling, coffee, and Scrabble! Big day! Big, sunny, happy, future-forward day.

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On Month Closer

Friday, April 9th, 2010

I ran some numbers in QuickBooks tonight and discovered that I’m one month away from purchasing the materials I need to study for, and take, the ACE group fitness instructor exam. I am very excited about this, and feel it’s yet another step in the right direction.

Good things come to those who are patient, right?

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