The week before Christmas (when I was supposed to be finishing my limited Christmas shopping), my friend, Liz, wanted to go roller skating. Let's face it...when faced with the decision to check off the to-do list or have some spontaneous fun, the only responsible thing to do is toss the to-do list in the nearest gas station trash can. So we went rollerskating. And had a blast. This has turned into somewhat of a regular ritual now, and I think the current plan is to go once a month to the local rink. Rollerskating as an adult is a bit different than when I was a kid. For one thing, I'm one of the only two adults there without a child also rolling around the wood floor. It's also about 20% actually skating and 80% dodging children who range from those doing tricks on the rink and those desperately trying to keep themselves upright. I also have found that the next day my hips ache a little more than they used to. The scary part is that I've turned into my mother out there....

It's been an exciting Saturday here in southwest Florida that started at 7:00 a.m. with me in the kitchen baking hashbrown casserole and baked ziti. Yep, the woman who has been known to bring a can of black olives for lunch because she had nothing left in the house that didn't have to be cooked turned on the oven this morning. I chopped and poured and shredded while wearing my pajamas and sipping my coffee. You don't understand how rare this moment of domestication was for me. I've quickly evolved into a single woman who eats microwaveable food and washes the dishes only when she runs out of coffee cups. (Sadly, I've actually re-used a coffee cup or two just to stretch the dishwashing schedule.) Nonetheless, I had a baby shower brunch to attend and needed a freeze-able casserole to leave behind for the family. If the fact that I actually cooked this morning wasn't odd enough, let me point out that I mentioned a BABY SHOWER on a Saturday before I had any wine to ...

Can you stand another travel-themed extended metaphor? Not that it matters, really, because I'm going to share one anyway. I was talking with a friend of mine earlier about some frustrations we're both having with our positions in life. We're both caught in the limbo-land of not being where we really want to be, but also accepting that life hands you what it hands you. This is an interesting blend of living moment by moment with a peripheral view of the future...that age-old head vs. heart problem. I have a really great opportunity right now that is not really in line with what I want to do with my life. As I shared this, my friend asked, "I thought you wanted to write full-time." I do. There's no doubt about that. I want to wake each morning completely aware of the wonders of life around me, to feel gratitude for my small part in the grand scheme of the universe, and share these insights with the world. That's my dream. His response to that was, "Wel...

I mentioned on my Twitter page that I would post my running routine here, so you can certainly stop reading now if you're not the least bit interested in what I do on the treadmill. (There's not much reason to post about my road runs; they're pretty straight forward...keep pounding the pavement.) Keep in mind that I'm still technically a beginning runner and am looking for what works for me. So here goes... 1/15/10 Treadmill Run .5 miles @ 5.5 - 0 incline .25 miles @ 5.0 - 1 incline .25 miles @ 4.0 - 2 incline .25 miles @ 3.5 - 3 incline .25 miles @ 4.5 - 4 incline .25 miles @ 3.5 - 5 incline .25 miles @ 4.0 - 4 incline .25 miles @ 3.5 - 3 incline .25 miles @ 5.0 - 2 incline .25 miles @ 3.5 - 1 incline .5 miles @ 4.5 - 1 incline .25 miles @ 3.5 - 7 incline .5 miles @ 5.0 - o incline .25 miles @ whatever I felt like - 0 incline So there you have it. It was a good workout, and there is no doubt in my mind that no man will ever try to pick me up when I'm running like ...

On the final leg of my Christmas trip, I stopped at Jen and Dan's house in Ocala. It was a nice, half-way point where I could get some quick sleep in a real bed and dish a bit with Jen before heading back to pick up the dog from the kennel. My original plan called for an 8 o'clock arrival, which would have given us plenty of time to see each other. However, I really have no concept of time and left South Carolina three hours later than I intended. In the grand scheme of things, I figured that twenty years from now, I would rather have the memories of a few more hours with my 83 year old grandmother than my 31 year old friend. While driving along US301 in south Georgia, watching the clock move closer and closer to midnight and updating Jen with a later and later ETA, my guilt took over. I still stand by my earlier decision, but I also had a difficult time accepting the fact that I would not be in Ocala when I said I would. As a result, I finally agreed to run the Five Points o...

Someone recently told me that I have an impulsive streak. ("Just an observation, not a criticism.") My initial reaction was to vehemently deny that statement despite the fact that I had just confessed to walking into Total Wine and buying $200 worth of wine just because it seemed like a good idea at 11:00 on a Thursday morning. Me? Impulsive? Don't answer that, especially if you know the truth. I shared this with my therapist yesterday and his eyes lit up when I said, "I think I have a restless soul." The fact that his eyes lit up is significant since we spend most of my sessions arguing with each other about ideas like whether or not a book he recommended is filled with psychobabble bullsh*t or why I should do a bit more thinking with my heart instead of my head. For once, he agreed with me and quickly pointed out that this is not necessarily a bad trait. In fact, it's what stirs my needs to explore and to write. It's also the reason why I don't, by...

This has been an interesting beginning to the new year. The evening began with a beer and air hockey challenge, which I handily lost. This was followed with some extreme go cart racing and more beer, a dinner that consisted of leftovers from one of my favorite South Carolina restaurants and homemade fried zucchini. And more beer. I saw "The Hangover" for the fourth time and laughed like an idiot. After the ball dropped in Times Square, I saw pieces of "Public Enemy" and finally crawled into bed around 2:00 a.m. and stayed there until 11:00 this morning. I spent today playing with a dog, watching college football, and hanging out with one of my current favorite people. I don't do the whole new year resolution thing. However, I do believe in taking a look at the lessons I've learned and the experiences that have unfolded for me in the previous year. Anyone who reads this blog can already figure out that my divorce, running, and dating again have greatly influe...