Only way is up

Recently, I encountered someone who stated, during the course of a conversation, that they didn’t believe in ceilings. Not the roof kind. I smiled politely but it struck a nerve. Obviously, this person has no clue what it’s like to be a woman in a male-dominated field. This person didn’t join the military. Admittedly, they had many jobs where they worked their way to the top. But to state you don’t believe in ceilings is unrealistic. I am no feminist. But I am a realist. And ceilings are real.

Taking a step back, I began to evaluate privilege. I am extremely privileged to have had some opportunities for career development, to have reached personal milestones, to live in the greatest country on Earth. Lest I ever forget my privilege, having a full (traditional) weekend off is numero uno. For years, I worked weekends and any other day I could to make ends meet. Attending church is a privilege. How many others forgo spiritual needs to work a shift that pays their bills? We no longer live in a place where weekends are sacred. It’s 24/7 ops, baby!

You know what else is a privilege? Feeling certain a brand new puzzle, straight out of the sealed box, will contain all the pieces necessary for completion. Ha. There goes that idea.

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I ask you –

Share your definition of privilege.

(The post Only way is up first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Random wo(man)

Rando #1. A man cannot claim to be self aware without having male friends. Part of self awareness comes from social cues. Look around. Any man with a close knit group of friends (even 1!) tends to be more self aware than a man with no friends. Trust me. And for the man who probably meant well when he saw me in the grocery store then said “Being as how you’re a woman, where’s the lemon juice in this place?”, I forgive you but you were very close to serious injury. Asshat.

Rando #2. Do you know what’s calming to me? Sweeping. I genuinely enjoy it, always have. In fact, a few years of high school I spent just sweeping. Down and back inside the huge shop. It’s monotonous, simple, and allows me to think through things. Some people like vacuuming. I like sweeping.

Rando #3. Early 2026, a PhD scholar and journal writer reached out to me about publishing a peer-reviewed article created from my dissertation. Fast forward a bunch of months, I finally dedicated about 4.5 hrs to reducing the ginormous manuscript to 50 pages. It wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be (fluff, anyone?). I slept on it for a few days, then submitted. More to come!

____________________________

I ask you –

What’s monotonous chore do you enjoy?

Share something random!

(The post Random wo(man) first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Monthly Recap

Let’s start off with the fun stuff, shall we?

Crickets.

I did a lot of things – runs, work outs, some volleyball. A few runs at the beach in the early part of the month. Creatine is still doing its thing with daily intake. I attribute it to less muscle soreness and an improved overall recovery time.

Apparently I missed a day. I remember it well – it was the Thursday before Hotter’n Hell and I was everywhere doing all the things but never hit the button to start an activity. I really think Garmin could do a better job with auto-starting activities, or at least asking if I’d like to. Maybe it does. Let me research this more.

courtesy of Strava highlights

The heat has been absolutely brutal. Not good for me, for my body, for anyone really. I woke up on September 1st, dreaming it was raining. I was wrong. No rain, no cool air. Just a repeat of every day prior, temps soaring over 100°, dry air that feels like a blow dryer. Despite daily electrolytes and staying out of the direct sun, I’m over it.

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I ask you –

What’s on your August recap?

(The post Monthly Recap first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Government Strategy

I can’t tell you what prompted this train of thought, but I do know it left the station long before I fully considered the message. I recall thinking about how numbers related to government actions are ineffectively quantifiable and potentially misleading.

For example, I researched how much money the government intended to make (or save) through the recent DRP (delayed resignation program) and subsequent personnel downsizing. Some estimates indicate $11 billion while others point to a maximum of $15 billion. I guess the difference of $4 billion is peanuts. The problem with these numbers is calculating the cost of salary + benefits for those leaving the workforce through DRP versus the ones who were let go without a severance package, to speak of. Very wide fluctuations.

More importantly, there is no way to determine the experience, knowledge, wisdom, and manpower of the decline. I don’t know how to place a value on someone’s experience that left with them when they were laid off. Sure, I can count a body in a chair, but what about the restructuring of their workload? Inevitably, some jobs are never reassigned. The position, the work, the value, and the benefit die with the absence. How does an organization recover from this loss?

The dominant analysis states a decline of 12% of the federal civilian workforce. The alleged goal was 10%, with an estimated $350 billion savings over 10 years. Currently, the government states they have saved about $55 billion. Yet the cuts cost $71 billion in economic and administrative costs associated with the rehiring of some of the workforce necessary to comply with legal obligations. So we spent money to make the cuts.

I believe my issue is what happens when a new congressional, senatorial, and executive branch of leadership must address these issues? How easy, cost effective, and (bottom line) possible is it to recover from a RIF (reduction in force)? How long does it take to rebuild experience?

Seems like an appropriate topic on this Labor Day.

____________________________

I ask you –

Have you experienced the issue of valuable knowledge leaving the workplace in favor of budget cuts/RIF?

(The post Government Strategy first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Ice, Ice

45th annual Hotter’n Hell Hundred rolled through the city.

After 2 very long (12+ hrs) days of preparations + event, I couldn’t wait to just sit down on my ice throne. Then, after sitting, I didn’t want to get back up. This is one of my favorite parts of HHH – sitting in the ice. I look forward to it each year.

HHH cyclists at SAFB Rest Stop #15

I also made some time the same week to take part in the Blue Bell Tour 2026. Free samples of Blue Bell ice cream? Who can say no? They actually gave us 2 samples. Strawberry cheesecake was amazing. And, see photo below, is Cherry Vanilla, which was also very very good. I’ve been looking forward to this tour for months. Jury duty almost derailed my plans, as did HHH prep. Alas, the ice cream won.

Thinking cool thoughts. The thoughts aren’t helping my heat hives, but I’m doing my best to stay cool and dry. It’s difficult when it’s 90° in the shade.

Fall, I’m waiting for you.

___________________________

I ask you –

Anyone else in Texas able to participate in the Blue Bell Tour?

(The post Ice, Ice first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Cooperation: necessary

The mental prompt: I was walking behind a woman while grocery shopping. Her shirt said something about supporting those seeking organ transplants.

The mental reaction: How angry would I be if I saw the recipient of one of my organs smoking, chronically eating unwell, and/or not exercising?

Answer: I would be livid. How dare someone take my free gift and not treat it like a priceless artifact.

Disclosure: I don’t know how often this happens but with morbidity and obesity rates what they are, I would not be surprised.

Let’s just do better, ok?

Not one to skimp on the “find some random crap to do every day”, I noticed my hips getting tighter. Could it be getting older? Could it be my running regimen, or lack thereof? Could it be the strength training splits? Maybe it’s Maybelline. I have zero idea, but, in an effort to mitigate the effects, I started stretching a bit more.

The forward fold really sucks. You won’t find me saying how much I love it, because I would be lying. Why not add a yoga block to the stretch to make it even tougher and more loathsome? Sure, why not. Yet the results cannot be denied. It hurts so good! The hips don’t lie. If only everyone could truly appreciate how funny I am.

____________________________

I ask you –

What’s your idea of a fun time? Tell me it, too, is learning a new stretch and repeating it daily until the muscle cooperates.

(The post Cooperation: necessary first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Reality Check + 5th Grade Draft

Another school year is upon us and I have a 5th grader! Yesterday she was in kindergarten so pardon me while I have a few nervous breakdowns. Who has just one?!

“Lately, it is difficult to tell who is winning the season as the draft picks are becoming trickier.” – a quote I made up by an unknown educator

Still, I’m convinced of my draft suspicions.

The first day went well. Eerily well. For now, excitement rings around having her own locker (top, because she’s tall), taking a snack because they have a late lunch, and her new class friend, a girl whose name I’ve never heard mentioned before. For now, everyone gets along and there is cohesion. It also helped the homework doesn’t really begin until week 2. Oh joy.

Somehow the summer flew by, but I’m hanging on to pool weekends for as long as possible. The weather is cooperative, boasting double digit days in the triple digits. Outside can best be described as “blow dryer with a turbo setting”. Truly, it’s so much fun.

I keep telling myself the heat will break soon and the perfect running temps (60 and below, please) will return. Again, this summer has probably been one of my best for still completing lift sessions outdoors…in the afternoons, no less! I credit the creatine/electrolyte mix coupled with the aforementioned pool recovery. Still, fall is just around the corner. On the other block, lost and confused, slightly inebriated.

____________________________

I ask you –

Anyone else anticipating fall weather?

(The post Reality Check + 5th Grade Draft first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Maybe I’m a Toys”R” Us Kid

As part of a leadership engagement cohort, with 12 other fabulous leading role models, one of the recent assignments was to reevaluate my individual development plan (or IDP). Might I digress for just a moment to say everyone should attend some kind of cohort of people striving to be their best. In 4 weeks, there’s been crying, laughing, cursing, and complaining. I highly recommend it!

Focus, Kel.

As a government civilian, having an approved IDP is just one of the many requirements. It is even a requirement for my team, most of whom are paid from a different pot of money yet also considered government employees. I know many people think an IDP is a colossal waste of time, that no one looks at them, and less take them seriously. Not I. I enjoy going over it with my employees as it provides a snapshot of their future plans, goals, and aspirations.

Between 2020 and 2024, my long-term goal was a PhD. In 2025, I moved it to the short term section. Now? I have a few blanks to fill.

What do I want to be when I grow up?

I love asking this question to transitioning service members, soon-to-be retirees, and anyone else on the cusp of life choices. I love how it implies we’re all growing up, and we have a vast world of options to explore. Because we do!

So I asked myself what do I want to be when I grow up? And a list developed.

1. Teach. I adore education and academia. I love to learn. I’d go back to college tomorrow.

2. There’s a specific job I look up from time to time. It’s a position I accidentally stumbled upon many years ago, but knew it was not the opportunity for me then. It won’t be an opportunity for several more years because it requires deployment cycles, travel, and a move. But it gets my heart beating overtime when I see it. I get that excited rush contemplating what it could do for my career, my mental health, and definitely my physical presence. Introducing the Fit Boss, and its fun equivalent, the Fun Boss. These are real titles. These roles assign you to a Navy big deck and send you out with 3,000 of your closest friends to maintain fitness, health, and MWR-related activities and requirements while deployed. One day, I’ll be a Fit Boss.

3. Entrepreneur. I want to open a running store / coffee house / bakery. I recognize these ideas may not align; however, tis my dream.

I’ll keep adding as I see fit, as my interests change, and/or as life gets more life-ier. Who knows. Maybe there’s an opportunity for a Fit Boss Coach Baker.

____________________________

I ask you –

Tell me – what do you want to be when you grow up?

(The post Maybe I’m a Toys”R” Us Kid first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

Smart Choices

I once thought how I’d love to have back my 16-yr-old body. Not a care in the world, could live on Snickers and bad decisions. And I did. But then I think of what my body has done for me – I realize the one I have now is absolutely perfect. I’m in awe of this body. It birthed a child. It carries me to and fro with ease. It reacts so positively when I nourish it. There’s something special about the word nourishment. More than eating, it requires nourishment. I nourish my mind, body, and soul. It rejoices.

Yogurt + blueberries = my daily standby

The salads that Mini makes fun of me for eating daily are truly fulfilling to my body. When I think about why I love them so much, I recall visiting Aunt Mary Catherine’s home and she always had a green salad with lunch. Always! I loved her simple green salad. And it was never referenced as a “salad”; it was a “green salad”. Probably vice fruit salad or ambrosia salad. Which are magical in their own way.

In this age of convenience, a salad is not. In fact, salads are expensive which proves a barrier to families with limited or strict incomes. Salads could even be considered rich-people food. I’m not rich but my body demands this rich person food. Enriching, if you will.

Sleep is also a favorite self-gift. I’ve found, through diligent research, that my body reacts the best when it receives 9 hours of sleep. Now, before anyone acts shocked, I’ve had an 8:30pm bedtime for nearly my entire life.

Notwithstanding the bed time, research (the real kind) indicates a full sleep cycle lasts about 90 mins which means 9 hrs of sleep grants about 6 full REM cycles. In my opinion, it is why I nearly always remember my dreams each morning. A full cycle grants me the ability to fall into a natural REM cycle where I awake in the proper stage to remember my dreams.

I’m no doctor…wait. I am!…but anecdotal evidence is evidence nonetheless!

____________________________

I ask you –

What is your average sleep cycle?

What foods do you find nourishing?

(The post Smart Choices first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)

July Recap!

A recent commander’s call resulted in the following phrase: Rise to expectations, fall to discipline. I saw many head-nods in the crowd, but I didn’t exactly understand what the phrase meant. It sounded pretty catchy. Indeed, I went looking.

Turns out, some Greek dude named Archilochus stated, “We don’t rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training”. Same, same. Essentially, our daily behaviors are more meaningful to producing change than a one-off situation or experience.

Which is the perfect segue for this post! Ta-da!

If only you could understand how many times I change post titles, words, captions, and questions, this might not be surprising. Why, thank you, Word Press, for acknowledging my skills!

According to Strava, I missed 2 days in July, but I don’t recall the circumstances surrounding it. I swear I didn’t miss any days. Oh well.

In other news, and I know I touched on it before, but I had a helluva 5-week training cycle!

I was able to update my benchmarks for all 4 lifts. Amazing what discipline does in 9 months. But I also must give credit where credit is due. The creatine makes a huge difference. The fog has lifted, my strength performance has improved (as evidenced by the PRs), and, overall, I feel like me. Sure, the words don’t always come to me, but I’m learning to give myself some much-needed grace.

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I ask you –

How was your July?

(The post July Recap! first appeared here at Running on Fumes.)