Eat Your Heart Out Sochi

Facebook Status Update:

Wishful thinking.

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Dreaming of spring

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Indoor spinning is my new favorite part of winter!  - Liar.  

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Only 5 feet of snow until grass!

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Final Status: You know what is better than biking in your dad's
 garage when it is -35 degrees out??

Spinning with a beautiful view of the falling snow!  

Bring on the white stuff - love me a Midwest winer! 

This morning I spent a half hour in the warmth of my Dad's garage with Tessa and my new indoor bike trainer.  I bought the trainer as a knee jerk reaction to horrible cold snap we were having.  I just wanted something that would help me get moving when all I wanted to do was sit around and watch TV.  So I have used it a few times with it planted in front of the TV all while talking about summer biking trips and thinking of warmth.  I do enjoy my new trainer, it helps me to get my legs spinning, is near my current home, and I get to control the remote.  But incase ANYONE tries to lie to you, indoor cycling sucks.  Now let me clarify - cycling classes =fun workout!  Indoor biking by yourself = who else can I call while I pedal??  It is boring and SO not the same as being out on the road, but in the dead of winter it gets the job done and helps you do the necessary breaking in of your butt.

Today as I walked to the garage to put my time in I noticed the recent snowfall that we were receiving and decided to post the picture above of my bike and the snow once Facebook.  As I started to think of a witty status to go with it, I started to have issues.  Why was I wishing so much for summer?  Why was I pretending that I hated the winter?  Why am I inside on this stupid trainer when I could be outside enjoying the ABOVE zero temps!  But most importantly - Why I am not out enjoying the snow instead of wishing it would melt away?

I am a snow lover.  Hold your rotten tomatoes back and just listen.  You see I absolutely love snow - the way it falls so gracefully and softly.  It coats everything in a blanket of pure white bliss.  I love the way it drapes and hangs on trees and buildings, and I love how it makes you slow down.  This morning as I was outside walking in the snow, I stopped for a moment and just listened.  I listened to the snow fall on the trees.  I heard the whirl of the snow blowers and the sound of the snow crunching under my feet.  Have you ever stopped to listen to the snow?  Now many of you may think that snow sounds like cars crashing into each other, the beeping of snow plows, and TV telling you how to stock up on life supply of water bottles and toilet paper but it is the worse snowfall since...well since the last snow fall.  But trust me - that isn't what snow sounds like - it is so pure and soft, and it will make you fall in love with it all over again.

The trail to the chicken coop

So as I continued outside with the idea of just simply walking around and enjoying the snow, butnI realized that much of the snow was getting into my fleece-lined Crocs, and I was going to need another mode of transportation to get around in the snow.  And at that moment I saw my skis.  I quickly laced up boots, grab my polls and when into my snow globe of a back yard.  I decided I would blaze a trail in the tracks of where my dad had plowed to get to the chicken coop.

Now this section was only covered with the fresh few inches that we have received over night.  As I started to get my skis on, I felt a bunch of snow being blown my way, and as I looked up I saw our neighbor, Bill, armed with his snow blower that he was using to clear the path from our house to his.  He laughed as I tried to dodge the incoming flakes and asked me what I was up to.  I informed him of my plan and he had the same look on his face that I had when I reliesed that after the chicken coop - well there was no plowed path, I would be blazing my own trail if I wanted to go farther.  He told me to have fun and took off to finished his snow blowing.

I came, I saw, I made my own trail

As I made my way to the coop and start to turn around the bend I ran straight into my father's new winter hobby - chopping wood.  There stood in the middle of my intended path was a large pile of fresh cut wood.  But on the side was a small path, so I decided to continue on made my way around.  As I cleared the "wooded" area, I was greeted by the beginning part of my unplowed path - snow that came up to my knees as started to push my skis forward.  I started to wonder if this was the best idea. I could feel the snow stinging on the bare parts of my ankles and my fingers trying to fight back against the cold and the wet.  But I pushed on and finally blazed my trail as I lopped around to my starting point.  I hadn't gone very far, maybe 25 yards, but it felt good to be out in the snow and back on my skis.

The "wooded section"

So I did a handful of laps around my new track and Sochi has nothing on my course!  Mine came with a few obstacles and even had a small downhill section, and it also had some spectators cheering me on. But most of all, I made my course.  I saw where the tended path should be and I blazed ahead.  And like may new paths - it only got easy each time around.  The snow shifted and settle more into my trail and I was better prepared to deal with any obstacles that occurred.  In a very short time, I was the sole owner of the world record and personal best that this trail had ever recorded.  I even made a "short track" for times I didn't want to deal with the wooden section - and once again guess who had the fast time on the course??  Yep.  Me.  Gold medal contender.

Ever heard a hen heckle someone - those lady can get mean!

Sometimes I think we get freaked out by having to learn new things or trying to blaze our own trail.  What if we do it wrong and no one else likes it?  What if someone could do it better than me?  What if I fail?  I have been facing this a lot lately - that self doubt of whether or not you are doing it "right."  Then you realize, that this life didn't come with instructions telling you the right and wrong way to do everything or how to think.  Instead you can use what you have learned from others, what you know from your experiences, and just go.  Build what you need to build, because nothing will ever be perfect.  And yes, I too saw the Lego movie and loved this same message that they sent out to adults and children alike - perfection isn't the only way to live, sometimes you truly need to color outside the lines.  Or build a double decker couch.

One of my spectators enjoying the snow

I also learned today that we can't yearn for better times to get us through our current day-to-day.  Complaining about the snow isn't going to make it melt any faster.  Instead we need to embrace what is around us and find the best way to enjoy all that is given to us each and every day.  To get outside and to simply slow down.  To find a way to enjoy and be happy in each moment.  To appreciate the good times, when everything is what you exactly want and need in that day.  And most of all - to get outside and to listen to the snow.