I was tagged by Beth a little while ago but didn't realize because (um, in case you hadn't noticed) I've been MIA from blogland for the last couple of weeks. (Thanks, mom, for pointing it out.) Lots of work, and workout, insanity going on.
Without further ado, 10 things that make me happy (in no particular order and probably influenced by my current mood).
1) My girl.
2) Coming home from work on a 15F night, opening the door and taking in the smell of the hearty beef stew husband had spontaneously decided to cook. Oh, and the kitchen was all cleaned up, too.
3) Teddy!!
4) Swimming. (This is going to make my coach very, very happy.)
Open water swimming usually makes me happy. But I have a love/hate relationship with the pool. Lately, however, I'm kinda liking it. At our club swims on Wednesday nights, Erica gives us fairly long practices with lots of built-in challenges. I'm loving the hypoxic sets that go something like this: 8x25 hypoxic (4-3-2-1)x2 with a nice long rest interval between each 25. The (4-3-2-1) refers to how many breaths you take during each 25. So 4 breaths, 3 breaths, etc. There are different ways to set up hypoxic sets; this version is very mellow. They can be completely hellish when the rest interval is short and some 25s call for zero breaths. Those don't make me as happy.
Hypoxic sets are supposed to help your body adapt to using less oxygen and handling more CO2. You learn to stay calm when in oxygen debt, a good skill to have come race day when you can get pummeled in the swim.
I enjoy them because they force me to relax and use less energy to get across the pool. My hands feel like giant paddles and I feel like I'm literally skimming the surface of the water.
5) Coffee.
People, this is the only thing that gets me out of bed in the morning. I used to have a fancy Italian press-a-button-and-you-shall-receive espresso machine. It quit, so now I use a simple French press and the coffee is just as good. In fact, I think I'll have a cup right now.
6) My mom, dad, sister, brother-in-law, and niece. I am enormously thankful to have family I'm close to.
7) Being home.
I never thought I'd say it, but this weird little corner of eastern PA is home now. It's a unique pocket of America. Close enough to two great cities; far enough away that it still feels remote. A place where the modern and traditional collide (buggy parking for the Amish, anyone?). Home to one of the best beer distributors on the east coast, a hidden gem of an airport, and one of just 23 velodromes in the country. Where it is not unusual to overhear a bunch of middle schoolers discussing the ins and outs of procuring their USA Cycling licenses instead of what time to meet at the mall.
8) Leaving the Valley.
As much as I love home, getting out and seeing other places makes me very happy. Especially when my gateway is the local Lehigh Valley International Airport, where you can arrive for a 12:30 flight at noon and be at the gate by 12:05.
9) Words.
I am fortunate to get paid for messing around with words every single day. I also have particular words I love to hear and say, including the following: bubble, lurk, lobster, owl, pamplemousse (French for grapefruit), zanzara (Italian for mosquito).
10) Eating delicious food.
And cooking it. Oh, and wine. And beer. And dessert.
Anyway, leave it to me to ramble. But there you have it. Ten things that make me happy and that I'm grateful to have in my life.
I'm not going to tag anyone in particular. Instead, in your comments, please tell me one thing that makes you happy and why (and post 10 happy things on your blog if you're feeling it).










