Things I am loving today...

A: The Colors of the Fall...
they are insane!!! the amazing, unbeliavable tones in the leaves of every single tree, that is something to die for!



B: The after work picnics in the park,
It has become a new routine, I just sit on the grass, with my new best friend: The Greek Yogut, just the two of us, while I devour it -and even lick the lid- look at the pond, smile at the ducks and their funny behavior, get mesmerized by the blinking reflection of the sun in the water, smell the fresh air of mid November, and appreciate all the beauty, peace and calm around.



C: The anticipation of the weekend,
that is going to be full of a few projects here and there, cooking my first pumpking bread, packing boxes to get ready to move, kicking the ball, playing baseball, hockey and basketball with my 3 year old nephew, watching his big sis' last soccer game of the season, my early morning run on Saturday, jumping rope on Sunday - And grab my dusty bike again, fill the tires, and hit the road -.



D: Speaking on the phone for hours with my hubby again,
sharing everyday stories, jokes and anecdotes. Because I was reminded this week how easy it is to lose the things and people you really love, for taking them for granted!
I have a great husband and feel so grateful because I have him and his love in my life, he makes me extremely happy and I am counting the days to see him again.

Crazy Workout! and the sock headband...

So Tuesdays I'm supposed to run.
Last week I got lazy, besides the fact it was pouring and we were in 30's and... I know I'm just lazy...
Anyway, I knew yesterday I wasn't going to skip my workout, so I went to get lunch to my apartment and packed my gym bag in like 30 secs, because I realized I also wanted to go to my niece's & nephew's ice skating lesson, since I'm leaving in less than a month and I miss them already!
So I realized that if I wanted to do it all, I had to get organized, since I only had 1 hour and 45 minutes till the start of the practice and I was 20 miles away, no room for error!.
I decided to change into my running gear at work, which I NEVER do, especially because I work in an Engineering company, meaning: gray haired folks, old fashioned, highly conservative, very sedentary kind of men. But since yesterday It felt more like a desert island around there, I was brave and went for it, praying all the time I wouldn't run into my boss in my way out.
I finally made up my mind about what location to choose for my running (I love romantic scenarios of Fall season!) and it was kind of half way between my office and the skating center. After all the traffic, and exasperating slow drivers in the left lane, and the school zones, I made it to the park at 4:45pm, which left me an hour away from the beginning of the half hour skate practice, and I was still 10 miles away!, so I plugged my ipod really quick, put my car key into my wrist pocket, and grabbed what I thought was my headband, closed the door behind me and rushed to get started.
20 steps later, I realized I had a sock in my hand instead of the silly headband, so I ran back to the car, looked for the real thing and got my heart monitor started, 5 minutes later!
Although with a rough start, and stressful timelines to make, the run was peaceful and wonderful. This park has Hills!!! and if you live in the Alps, or the Andes or the Rocky mountains that would be the regular stuff, well here in Dallas, everything, everywhere is flat, flat and flatter! I enjoyed those slopes as much as the cookie dough ice cream I had last Tuesday (when I slacked on my routine! I told you I got lazy!!!) and breathed in the cool air of fall, enjoyed the gorgeous palette of colors that all the trees were showing, going from yellow, to orange, red and to the old but always great green. It was magical and all 45 minutes were great... I ignored my Heart Rate, pace, and distance, and decided to go for a comfortable kind of run, turning out to be more intense than what I'd originally thought. I guess I got carried away by those damn pretty trees.
I was sitting in my car by 5:35 pm, ten minutes before the kiddos' practice, no stretching at all (which today I totally regret!) and although in a hurry, and sweaty, I was still in the high of the endorphines, and despite the horrendous traffic due to construction in the highway, I was only 5 minutes late, I changed my stinky t-shirt, put on my jacket, gloves and boots and ran into the ice ring area... but you know what? although hectic and crazy, the smiles and kisses from the little ones made every single second of that race against the clock worth it... (and they did not complain about their sweaty smelly aunt at all!) that's why I love them so much, because they love me no matter what.

The Magic of Now...

So, there is something so inevitable about the concept of time... It can not be frozen, or hurried, or turned back, or flashed forward.

So many things stay in the past, like those ugly glasses I wore in middle school and would never ever wear again even if I was paid, or those bangs I cut myself when I was 10 and grew back not so patiently 'cause I do not look good with bangs, those I so want to leave in the past. You know why? because I keep cutting them at least every 2 years, just to get to the same old conclusion: I still do not look good in bangs, for God's sake!!!

So many other things seem to belong only to the future, like dreaming about vacations to the Greek Islands or plans for the moment I get back to live full time with my hubby.
Sometimes I find myself in the present either thinking about all the things I lived in the past or about all the things I would love to live in the future... and then the Right Now escapes to me, I let it go, I fail to live and succeed to remember and dream.

I need to focus in the importance of being present because yesterday will never come back and tomorrow will always be an assumption, it might or might not happen, either it will show up in a different way I planned or it might never happen at all!!! so what sense does it make to stay stationary with those two guys?, when I can run free and do whatever I want with the right now, because that one is mine, completely mine, and no one can take it from me, I can either have a blast with it or let it go and never see it again, regretting how little I enjoyed it.

This, Now, Is all I have for sure, and I am living it, and you know what, it is perfect... it tastes like glory, it smells like roses, it looks gorgeous, it sounds like chirping birds and it feels intense... it is not better than anything and it is not worse than anything, it just IS and I am loving it!

So... that's my thing!

On Sunday I was in the park next to the library's pond, it was early and there were only a few people around, only those crazy early risers like me, and I witnessed the sunrise while I was jumping rope to the beat of Kylie Minogue and Madonna... and I was smiling, all 40 minutes straight, even when my heart got to 160 bpm, I felt so absolutely happy, thankful, and connected to the Universe... so in sync with the wind, with the birds around, with the water calmed and still, with the bright sun. I was so there, so present, so full of life, with energy flowing in me, trhu me, out of me and coming back.
There was no other thing I would rather be doing or other place I would rather be.

Then I realized I felt exactly the same way on Wednesday while I was swimming in the natatorium, or on Saturday during my 7k run... Hitting the pavement, or the pool, or the bike, or the mat, it all brings the same feeling to me... I love the strength in my body, what it is actually able to do, how I can take it to the next level and it feels so empowering, it is like I can conquer the world... That's my thing!!! That's so my thing.

And I started observing everyone around me and we all have our own thing, something that brings passion to our lives, some things that make us smile, that make us forget the clock, that make us feel unique, enough, marvelous...


It can be either painting and drawing, doing crafts, or taking pictures, or solving math problems and playing with equations and numbers, the weirdest things I don't really get (and they might say the same about my "weird" fitness love), it is just amazing to see the spark in their eyes and a truth joy and good energy flow. That's what it is all about, finding those special things that light our lives and find time to bring them to our busy schedules, get to do those things that make us think it is all worth it!

Heart felt hugs

I never thought that a hug could fill the soul as much as a Thanksgiving dinner fills up your tummy! seriously, and sometimes it comes from the most unexpected people at the most unexpected moments, and bang!
There they are, out of the blue, someone holds you in his arms, and his good energy gets transfered into you, your heart fills up with love, your lungs fill up with beautiful air and you feel that someone just did some kind of CPR procedure on you, because you feel like you are back to life!
And I am not even talking about the romantic, chick flick kind of hug that makes you sigh and say ohhhhhh...
I am talking about so much more than that, there are so many categories... there is

The Hello Hug! the hug that my little niece gives me when I show up at her place preceded by an energetic run with open arms.

The Bye bye Hug! everytime I tell my little nephew that I have to go and he makes this sad face with an upside down smile and teary eyes and then I tell him that I'll be back very soon and we will play with his race cars, and boom there it is, a long hug with a tiny head pressed in my shoulder.

The Comforting Hug! that my mom gives me, those are good! when I tell her that I feel very very sad because I miss my hubby, and then she hugs me really tight, and I am transported to my child years and start crying in her shoulder and she whispers sweet words in my ear.

The I missed you Hug! That my bro and sis have given me in so many airports, when I show up in the scalator and run to meet them, and cry and tell them how wonderful they look and how much I missed them and how happy I am to see them.

The I will miss you Hug! That I have given to my hubby so many times, when I have to leave once again to my long trips and I just glue to him, feeling him, trying to record his smell, and his shape in my body, so that we can still feel each other when we are far away.

The Where in the world have you been Hug! this it the most recent I have felt and it was wonderful! and it was given to me by my very special coach, who I hadn't seen in several months, it was long, warm and heart felt and it made me feel at home again, it made me feel special, missed, loved. It brought me back to life after a very tough dry patch I was going thru, and he has no idea how much it meant to me.


And that's why I love sincere hugs so much, because they are given generously, without further intentions, or secret agendas, they are for free and still they have so much value!